Ruth Elizabeth Russell (born 6 March 1946) is an Australian peace activist, and one of five Australian citizens who travelled to Iraq in 2003 to function as a human shield, and for some of the eight weeks was located at the Taji food silo. Her stated reason for doing so was to show "solidarity with the Iraqi civilians who will suffer greatly from the planned invasion of Iraq". [1] [2]
Russell later regretted the choice of the silo, which was later revealed to have contained AWB wheat, who were engulfed over their payment of kickbacks to Saddam Hussein's regime.
Russell was the lead candidate for the Australian Democrats in South Australia at the 2007 federal election to replace retiring senator Natasha Stott Despoja, but the Democrats SA ticket received only 8,908 votes or 0.88 percent, suffering a 1.50 percent swing against them.
José Manuel Ramos-Horta is an East Timorese politician who is the president-elect of East Timor and is due to take office on 20 May 2022, having previously served as president from 20 May 2007 until 20 May 2012. Previously he was Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2002 to 2006 and Prime Minister from 2006 to 2007. He is a co-recipient of the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize, along with Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo, for working "towards a just and peaceful solution to the conflict in East Timor".
A human shield is a non-combatant who either volunteers or is forced to shield a legitimate military target in order to deter the enemy from attacking it. The use of human shields as a resistance measure was popularized by Mahatma Gandhi as a weapon of peace. On the other hand, the weaponization of civilians has also developed as a tactic by some non-state actors like ISIS.
The United States public's opinion on the invasion of Iraq has changed significantly since the years preceding the incursion. For various reasons, mostly related to the unexpected consequences of the invasion, as well as misinformation provided by US authorities, the US public's perspective on its government's choice to initiate an offensive is increasingly negative. Before the invasion in March 2003, polls showed 47–60% of the US public supported an invasion, dependent on U.N. approval. According to the same poll retaken in April 2007, 58% of the participants stated that the initial attack was a mistake. In May 2007, the New York Times and CBS News released similar results of a poll in which 61% of participants believed the U.S. "should have stayed out" of Iraq.
Significant opposition to the Iraq War occurred worldwide, both before and during the initial 2003 invasion of Iraq by a United States-led coalition, and throughout the subsequent occupation. People and groups opposing the war include the governments of many nations which did not take part in the invasion, and significant sections of the populace in those that did.
George W. Bush's tenure as the 43rd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2001, and ended on January 20, 2009. Bush, a Republican from Texas, took office following a narrow victory over Democratic incumbent vice president Al Gore in the 2000 presidential election. Four years later, in the 2004 presidential election, he defeated Democrat nominee John Kerry to win re-election. Bush was succeeded by Democrat Barack Obama, who won the 2008 presidential election. Bush, the 43rd president, is the eldest son of the 41st president, George H. W. Bush.
Estimates of the casualties from the Iraq War have come in several forms, and those estimates of different types of Iraq War casualties vary greatly.
The War Resisters League (WRL) is the oldest secular pacifist organization in the United States.
Alexander John Gosse Downer AC is an Australian former politician and diplomat who was leader of the Liberal Party from 1994 to 1995, Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1996 to 2007, and High Commissioner to the United Kingdom from 2014 to 2018.
James Edward Doyle, Jr., is an American attorney and politician who served as the 44th governor of Wisconsin, serving from January 6, 2003 to January 3, 2011. In his first election to the governorship, he defeated incumbent Governor Scott McCallum by a margin of 45 percent to 41 percent; the Libertarian Party candidate Ed Thompson won 10 percent of the vote. Although in 2002 Democrats increased their number of governorships, Doyle was the only one of them to unseat a Republican. Doyle also served as Wisconsin’s Attorney General for 12 years before becoming Governor. He is currently an attorney 'of counsel' in the Madison, Wisconsin office of the law firm of Foley & Lardner and serves on the corporate board of Epic Systems.
Baron Paul Hill is a retired American politician who served as a U.S. Representative for Indiana's 9th congressional district from 1999 to 2005 and from 2007 to 2011.
Lynn C. Woolsey is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for California's 6th congressional district from 1993 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, her district included all of Marin County and most of Sonoma County.
The Human Shield Action to Iraq was a group of people who traveled to Iraq to act as human shields with the aim of preventing the U.S.-led coalition forces from bombing certain locations during the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
Greens Western Australia, commonly known as the Greens WA, is a member party of the Australian Greens in Western Australia. The Greens (WA) was formed following the merger of the Western Australian Green Party with the Green Earth Alliance composed of the Vallentine Peace Group and Alternative Coalition in 1990. The Party became officially affiliated with the Australian Greens in 2003.
The 2006 United States Senate election in New York was held on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton won re-election to a second term in office, by a more than two-to-one margin. Clinton was challenged by Republican John Spencer, former Mayor of Yonkers, and longtime political activist Howie Hawkins of the Green Party.
Michael Berg is an American activist and politician who was a candidate for the United States House of Representatives in the State of Delaware on the Green Party ticket in the 2006 midterm elections. He is most well known as the father of Nick Berg, one of the first American civilians to be abducted and beheaded by insurgents in Iraq.
In the runup to the 2003 Invasion of Iraq, press stories appeared in the United Kingdom and United States of a plastic shredder or wood chipper into which Saddam and Qusay Hussein fed opponents of their Baathist rule. These stories attracted worldwide attention and boosted support for military action, in stories with titles such as "See men shredded, then say you don't back war". A year later, it was determined there was not enough evidence to support the existence of such a machine.
The 2008 congressional elections in Pennsylvania was held on November 4, 2008 to determine who will represent the state of Pennsylvania in the United States House of Representatives. Pennsylvania has 19 seats in the House, apportioned according to the 2000 United States Census. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; those elected will serve in the 111th Congress from January 4, 2009 until January 3, 2011. The election coincides with the 2008 U.S. presidential election.
The 2008 United States House of Representatives Elections in Florida were held on November 4, 2008 to determine who would represent the state of Florida in the United States House of Representatives. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; those elected served in the 111th Congress from January 4, 2009 until January 3, 2011. The election coincided with the 2008 U.S. presidential election.
Mount Russell is a village in Inverell Shire of New South Wales in Australia. In the 2006 census the village and surrounding area had a population of 237. The village is approximately 25 km (16 mi) north-west of Inverell, New South Wales and is approximately 618 km (384 mi) by road from the state capital Sydney.
An anti-war movement is a social movement, usually in opposition to a particular nation's decision to start or carry on an armed conflict, unconditional of a maybe-existing just cause. The term anti-war can also refer to pacifism, which is the opposition to all use of military force during conflicts, or to anti-war books, paintings, and other works of art. Many activists distinguish between anti-war movements and peace movements. Anti-war activists work through protest and other grassroots means to attempt to pressure a government to put an end to a particular war or conflict or to prevent it in advance.