‘My life changed forever but I must move on’
iraq war victim:
Ali Abbas, now 25, was just 12 when he was orphaned, lost both of his arms and suffered horrendous burns when a bomb hit his home during a botched US air raid, just days after the Iraq war started. It is estimated approximately half a million Iraqi civilians died in the war and ensuing conflict.
He says: “My life changed forever when Iraq was invaded. These findings are not going to change anything in Iraq or for me – I always knew the war was built on lies. When I think about what happened, it’s impossible not to be angry – but I have to try to move on. My life as I knew it was taken from me that night, when my parents were both killed. I miss them so much but the memories get cloudier as time goes on.
“I blame Tony Blair and George Bush for what happened to me and my country. They invaded for power – not for the good of the country and its citizens.
“Sadly, the situation in Iraq is so much worse now – and the people responsible for causing such chaos need to pay. There are weapons on the streets, there are no police, no laws. Hundreds of people have been killed in suicide bombs in just the last few days alone.
“My country has been destroyed, but I feel at home in the UK thanks to the kindness of the British people. I came here for treatment when I was 12 years old. I want to find a job that I can do despite my disabilities.”