She was unable to breathe. The medical staff applied an oxygen mask, but it wasn't enough. In front of the U.S. delegation, her grief-stricken parents and helpless medical personnel, she died. A 50-cent tube could have saved her life, according to one of the doctors. But the tube is impossible to obtain as a result of the sanctions.
Similar tragedies occur daily throughout Iraq.
The sanctions are formally under the auspices of the UN Security Council, but were imposed and are maintained largely as a result of U.S. policy. While nominally aimed at the regime of Saddam Hussein and his development of weapons of mass destruction, they have created misery and death while further entrenching Hussein in power. Indeed, as Talaat and others argue, the sanctions themselves are weapons of mass destruction. The sanctions prohibit all imports except limited foods and medicines, and are the most draconian ever imposed on any country in modern history. Everything that legally enters Iraq has to be approved by a UN committee.