Following Iraq's defeat in the Gulf War, sanctions remained in place. While the food situation has improved somewhat, there remain severe shortages of essential drugs and medical supplies. Common items such as aspirin and bandages that most U.S. families have in their medicine cabinets are not seen in the medicine cupboards of Iraqi hospitals. Equipment in hospitals is pre-1990 and much of it is in disrepair. In order to buy medicines, many families have sold their personal belongings and household furnishings, including their homes.
Inflation is rampant.
The effects of the Gulf War and seven years of sanctions leave Iraq at the brink of disaster and its people on the edge of despair. No one knows. In November 1997, and again in February 1998, the United States came close to bombing Iraq over its non-compliance with UN resolutions pertaining to its obligations. Military action was averted following an agreement brokered by Kofi Annan, Secretary General of the United Nations, and agreed to by the UN Security Council and the Iraqi government. Growing American anti-war resistance helped the U.S. to reconsider its position and made it more likely that the U.S. government would support the deal negotiated by Kofi Annan.