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At the turn of the century, America had emerged victorious from the Cold War and stood unchallenged.

It had greater power and influence than any other nation in history. It could have wielded that power judiciously to protect the American-led post-war world order and inspire other countries to follow its values of freedom and democracy.

Instead, it squandered that supremacy embarking on a calamitous misadventure in Iraq that was ill-advised and disastrously executed. It would be the beginning of the end of the pax Americana.

A direct line can be drawn between that debacle, which began on 20 March 2003 and others that followed, right up to the perilous state of the world today.

The war in Ukraine, the unchecked ascendancy of China, the growing power of Iran, and even the rise of Trump and the politics of populism all have roots that can be traced back to America’s folly in Iraq.

Iraqi President Saddam Hussein stands by an Iraqi flag, January 17, 2002. On the 11th anniversary of the Gulf War, President Saddam Hussein said on Thursday his country was prepared for and would foil any fresh U.S. military attack against Iraq as part of a war against terrorism. REUTERS/INA/POOL fk/CRB
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Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein standing by an Iraqi flag in 2002
U.S. President George W. Bush (R) shakes hands with British Prime Minister Tony Blair in the Oval Office of the White House June 7, 2005. The two leaders, both faced with skepticism at home over their handling of the Iraq war, met for their first talks since Blair emerged from elections a month ago with a third term but weakened politically. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
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George W Bush had the support of Britain’s Tony Blair in his decision to invade Iraq

The falsehoods and delusions that led to war

America went to war led by ideologues who believed they could refashion the Middle East in their own likeness and bring democracy and a more pro-Western outlook to the region.

The failure of that neoconservative project has done lasting damage to Americans’ claims of exceptionalism, and their belief that their form of governance is an example to the rest of the world. And that has by extension done enduring harm to the American-led world order.

The failings of that project in Iraq are well documented. The false premise of non-existent weapons of mass destruction, the delusion that invaders would be welcomed as liberators, the absence of any plan for the day after. The damage to America’s standing in the world has been incalculable.

Equally, human rights violations, violations of democratic norms, targeted killings, and the atrocities of Abu Ghraib prison, from where photographs showing abuse of inmates by US soldiers emerged, tarnished America’s image as the standard-bearer of democracy and human rights.

This has weakened Washington’s influence in the world. When India and other countries in the global south sit on the fence in UN resolutions on Ukraine, their ambivalence can in part be traced back to America’s record in Iraq.

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US military escort a group of Iraqi soldiers dressed in civilian clothes north of Basra, Iraq, in 2003
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US military escort a group of Iraqi soldiers dressed in civilian clothes north of Basra, Iraq, in 2003
FILE PHOTO: An Iraqi man cries holding a little boy in front of a house damaged by a missile during an air strike in Baghdad, Iraq March 22, 2003. REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic/File Photo SEARCH "20TH ANNIVERSARY OF U.S INVASION OF IRAQ" FOR THE PHOTOS
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An Iraqi man cries in front of a house damaged by a missile in Baghdad in 2003

A lasting impact on US foreign policy

The failure undermined America’s own self-confidence. The spectre of Iraq made Barack Obama reluctant to be drawn into the Syria conflict and punish its leader’s diabolical use of chemical weapons.

That reluctance was seen in Moscow as an American weakness, and arguably emboldened it to defy the West and seize Crimea with relative impunity a few years later. And that in turn encouraged Vladimir Putin to invade Ukraine in earnest last year.

The distraction of Iraq led to failure in Afghanistan, a protracted two decades of occupation and a disastrous withdrawal.

Iraq sucked up what policymakers in Washington call bandwidth year after year, while in the east a far greater challenge was rising. The West would take years to wake up to the threat posed by China.

Closer to Iraq, Iran was strengthened. Before the invasion, its regional influence was limited to a militia in southern Lebanon, Hezbollah. Today it has clout in capitals from Beirut to Damascus to Baghdad to Yemen.

The war in Iraq has done damage to America’s belief in itself. The conflict cost a trillion dollars and thousands of American lives. It has fuelled opposition to any more military adventures abroad.

And it has undermined Americans’ faith in both government and the political and media elites meant to hold it to account. That only in part helps explain the rise of populism that ultimately brought Trump to the White House.

FILE PHOTO: An explosion rocks Baghdad during air strikes, Iraq March 21, 2003. REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic/File Photo SEARCH "20TH ANNIVERSARY OF U.S INVASION OF IRAQ" FOR THE PHOTOS
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An explosion rocks Baghdad during air strikes on 21 March 2003
US military escort a group of Iraqi soldiers dressed in civilian clothes north of Basra, Iraq, in 2003
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US military escort a group of Iraqi soldiers dressed in civilian clothes north of Basra, Iraq, in 2003

Iraq still recovering from journey to hell and back

In Iraq, people are now no longer living under tyranny. There is reportedly some sense of hope and renewal, but only recently. And the country has literally been to hell and back to get there.

Hundreds of thousands have died in the war and the waves of sectarian violence that followed. The country has been broken, its institutions destroyed and its economy ravaged.

It is only just beginning to recover from all that trauma. But perhaps it can now look forward cautiously to a slightly better future. That is more than might have been said had Saddam Hussein remained in power or any of his impulsive, venal sons.

A statue of Saddam Hussein is pulled down by US soldiers after the invasion of Iraq in 2003
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Another view of Saddam Hussein’s statue being pulled down
FILE PHOTO: Thousands of crosses stand on a hillside memorial in honor of U.S. troops killed in the Iraq war, in Lafayette, California, January 12, 2007. REUTERS/Kimberly White (UNITED STATES)/File Photo
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Thousands of crosses at a memorial for US troops killed in the Iraq war, in Lafayette, California

Ten years ago, George W Bush said the final verdict on his actions in Iraq would come long after his death.

That may be true, and it may take more time to judge whether the removal of one of the worst tyrants in history in any way justified the enormous cost and pain that then ensued.

Twenty years on, though, we can say the invasion and occupation have had a lasting legacy on the region and the world, and much of that has not been for the better.

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Several critically injured after vehicle ‘driven into crowd’ in Los Angeles

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Several critically injured after vehicle 'driven into crowd' in Los Angeles

Three people are in critical condition after a vehicle drove into a crowd in Los Angeles.

The Los Angeles Fire Department’s (LAFD) public information officer Captain Adam Van Gerpen told Sky’s US partner NBC News the vehicle hit a taco cart before colliding with a large number of people outside a nightclub.

“Apparently there was a vehicle that had somebody who lost consciousness,” he said. “We have reports that there was a gunshot wound in one of the patients.”

Pictures from the scene in Santa Monica Boulevard, in East Hollywood, show a damaged grey vehicle which has mounted the pavement with debris strewn across the ground.

Sergeant Travis Ward, central traffic division watch commander at the Los Angeles Police Department, said it was too early to say if the incident was intentional and that an investigation was ongoing.

The LAFD said three people are in critical condition, six in serious condition and 19 in fair condition.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.

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Trump sues Wall Street Journal and Rupert Murdoch for $10bn after Epstein letter report

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Trump sues Wall Street Journal and Rupert Murdoch for bn after Epstein letter report

Donald Trump has filed a lawsuit against Rupert Murdoch, two Wall Street Journal reporters and the publication’s owner, News Corp.

The US president has accused the named individuals of defamation, claiming they acted with malicious intent and caused him overwhelming financial and reputational harm.

The lawsuit, which was filed in Miami, seeks at least $10bn (£7.5bn) in damages.

In a post on Truth Social, Mr Trump called the lawsuit “historic legal action” which was filed on behalf of himself and all Americans who he said will “no longer tolerate the abusive wrongdoings of the Fake News Media”.

“I hope Rupert and his ‘friends’ are looking forward to the many hours of depositions and testimonies they will have to provide in this case,” he wrote.

It comes after Mr Trump claimed that a letter he allegedly wrote to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein was “fake” and said he would sue the “ass off” Rupert Murdoch, who owns the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), which first published the story.

The publication had said Mr Trump wrote the letter as part of a collection Epstein’s former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell, planned to give him as a 50th birthday present in 2003.

It claimed the message, allegedly from Mr Trump, featured several lines of typewritten text, concluding with: “May every day be another wonderful secret.”

The text was framed by what appeared to be a hand-drawn outline of a naked woman, the WSJ claimed. The letter is also said to have featured the signature “Donald”.

Mr Trump immediately denied writing the letter when the WSJ report was published on Thursday night.

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Memes of Epstein undermine victims, says lawyer

“The Wall Street Journal printed a FAKE letter, supposedly to Epstein,” he wrote on Truth Social.

“These are not my words, not the way I talk. Also, I don’t draw pictures. I told Rupert Murdoch it was a Scam, that he shouldn’t print this Fake Story. But he did, and now I’m going to sue his ass off, and that of his third rate newspaper.”

Mr Trump ignored questions about Epstein as he signed a cryptocurrency bill at the White House earlier on Friday.

The president’s lawsuit comes as the US government filed a motion to unseal grand jury transcripts related to Epstein, who took his own life while awaiting trial in 2019.

In a Manhattan federal court filing, the Department of Justice said the criminal cases against Epstein and Maxwell are a matter of public interest, justifying the release of associated grand jury transcripts.

Earlier on Friday, Mr Trump said attorney general Pam Bondi had been asked to release the transcripts because of “the ridiculous amount of publicity given to Jeffrey Epstein”.

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The justice department previously said it had around 200 documents relating to Epstein and that the FBI had thousands more.

It is unknown how much of this is grand jury testimony, which is typically kept secret under US law.

Read more:
All we know about the ‘friendship’
Trump denies writing birthday letter to Epstein

The president has faced increased scrutiny over his alleged friendship with Epstein since his administration’s U-turn on the so-called ‘Epstein files’.

Mr Trump pledged to release files on Epstein during his presidential campaign, as his MAGA movement accused the Biden administration of suppressing the extent of Epstein’s paedophilia, predatory behaviour and his so-called “client list” – thought to contain names of the rich and famous who conspired with him in his child sex trafficking operation.

But after a review of the evidence the US government has, the Justice Department recently determined that no “further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted”.

Venezuela releases jailed Americans in prisoner swap

The Trump administration said on Friday that it had negotiated an exchange with Venezuela, resulting in the release of 10 jailed Americans.

US secretary of state Marco Rubio said the prisoners, who had been held in the South American country, were “on their way to freedom”.

Alleged gang members imprisoned in the CECOT jail in EL Salvador. Pic: Reuters
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Men in the CECOT jail in EL Salvador. Pic: Reuters

In return, 252 Venezuelan migrants being held in El Salvador have been freed, the Venezuelan government said.

They had been held in the notorious maximum security CECOT prison after being deported by the US.

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Trump denies claim he wrote birthday letter to Jeffrey Epstein – and says he has ordered release of more case files

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Trump denies claim he wrote birthday letter to Jeffrey Epstein - and says he has ordered release of more case files

Donald Trump has called an alleged letter he wrote to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein “fake” and said he will sue the “ass off” Rupert Murdoch, who owns the paper that first published the claim.

In multiple posts on Truth Social, the US president accused The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) of fabricating the letter that it claimed was written by Mr Trump as part of a collection of letters addressed to Epstein that his former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell planned to give him as a birthday present in 2003.

According to documents seen by the WSJ, Mr Trump’s letter featured several lines of typewritten text framed by what appeared to be a hand-drawn outline of a naked woman.

The paper said the letter concludes “Happy Birthday – and may every day be another wonderful secret”, and featured the signature “Donald”, allegedly drawn across the woman’s waist, meant to mimic the appearance of pubic hair.

Jeffrey Epstein. File pic: New York State Sex Offender Registry via AP
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Epstein took his own life in prison in 2019. Pic: AP

Responding to the WSJ’s claims, Mr Trump wrote: “The Wall Street Journal printed a FAKE letter, supposedly to Epstein. These are not my words, not the way I talk. Also, I don’t draw pictures.

“I told Rupert Murdoch it was a Scam, that he shouldn’t print this Fake Story. But he did, and now I’m going to sue his ass off, and that of his third rate newspaper. Thank you for your attention to this matter! DJT.”

He said earlier he would also sue the WSJ and News Corp, which Mr Murdoch owns. The WSJ is published by News Corp subsidiary company, Dow Jones & Co.

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From 16 July: Trump: Epstein case is ‘a boring story’

The Justice Department has not responded to the WSJ and the FBI declined to comment.

In a separate post, Mr Trump said he has asked the attorney general, Pam Bondi, to release “any and all pertinent grand jury testimony” in the case of the paedophile financier who was found dead in his Manhattan cell in August 2019, shortly after he was arrested on sex trafficking charges.

Analysis: The credibility of the Epstein-Trump letter rests on the word of the WSJ – until an actual document is produced

Classy, it’s not.  

The alleged letter sent to Jeffrey Epstein by Donald Trump has a typewritten note inside the hand-drawn outline of a woman. There’s a squiggly signature – “Donald” – below the waist. 

It shows friendship, certainly – the dialogue from “Donald” to “Jeffrey” reads: “Happy birthday – and may every day be another wonderful secret.”

However, it doesn’t quite produce definitive proof of impropriety.  

The Wall Street Journal hasn’t produced the document and, until it does, the story’s credibility rests on its word.  

Whether it rests easy will be tested by Team Trump – it was clear last night that prominent MAGA figures were rallying to the president’s cause and turning their anger towards the Wall Street Journal – circling the wagons and shooting the messenger.  

Trump has threatened to sue the Wall Street Journal and has targeted its owner, old friend Rupert Murdoch. “I’ll sue his ass off,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. 

It’s a billionaires’ struggle symptomatic of the wider acrimony.  Trump can pursue Rupert Murdoch through the courts, but the MAGA millions will be more difficult to pin down. 

Trump supporters who stood behind him as he screamed “cover-up” by the so-called “deep state”. They stand before him now, let down.

Donald Trump has authorised his attorney-general Pam Bondi to release grand jury testimony in the Jeffrey Epstein investigation – it’s something, but it’s far short of everything.

He is the man who did more than most to bake conspiracy theory into US political culture, so he can hardly complain it turns on him. 

It has, and how.

The release of any documents, Mr Trump said, would be subject to approval by a court.

The justice department has previously said it had around 200 documents relating to Epstein and that the FBI had thousands more. It is unknown how much of this is grand jury testimony – which is typically kept secret under US law.

Ms Bondi responded to the president on X, writing: “President Trump-we are ready to move the court tomorrow to unseal the grand jury transcripts.”

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Elon Musk, who claimed last month that Mr Trump appears in the Epstein files, was surprisingly among the first to come to the president’s defence over the WSJ claims.

“It really doesn’t sound like something Trump would say tbh,” the tech billionaire wrote on X, before going on to ask where the evidence against Epstein allegedly held by the FBI had gone.

The Trump administration has come under criticism after the president appeared to U-turn on his own promise to release more information about the Epstein case publicly.

In the run-up to the US election last year, Mr Trump drew on rumours and conspiracy theories that appeared to accuse the Biden administration of suppressing the extent of Epstein’s paedophilia, predatory behaviour and his so-called “client list” – thought to contain names of the rich and famous who conspired with him in a child sex trafficking operation.

Ms Bondi fuelled these rumours in February by telling Fox News that the alleged Epstein client list was “sitting on my desk right now to review”.

Read more:
Ghislaine Maxwell could challenge imprisonment
Why is Trump fighting with MAGA over Epstein?
The huge impact of Musk’s row with Trump

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In the same month, the justice department released some government documents regarding the case, but there were no new revelations.

After a months-long review of additional evidence, the department earlier this month released a video meant to prove that Epstein killed himself, but said no other files related to the case would be made public.

The decision was criticised by many in Mr Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement, who Mr Trump later called “weaklings”.

Sky News has contacted the White House for further comment.

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