DOI: 10.1177/0020872807076041 Man-made disaster and development The case of Iraq

The idea of disaster is usually associated with human suffering caused by natural events: tsunamis, hurricanes, earthquakes, floods. However, human-created disasters stemming from war, the conduct of repressive regimes, the use of sanctions, and economic and social policies represent an equally important dimension of disaster. These practices have political goals and produce a range of negative social and economic conditions beyond their stated aims. They cause human suffering, especially among vulnerable groups, dispropor-tionately women, children, older people and poor people. In this article I explore the concept of disaster and examine US-led policy towards Iraq as a case study of a human-made disaster. I argue that the current war, following years of economic sanctions, US military intervention in 1990–1, the Iran–Iraq war and decades of government repression has crippled Iraq’s economic and social development. I consider the ongoing violence and social disintegra