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On March 19, 2003, the United States led an unlawful invasion into Iraq, occupying the country for over eight years until the official withdrawal of troops throughout 2011. It is estimated that around 405,000 deaths occurred as a direct result. Most of these deaths were of Iraqi civilians, hundreds of thousands of others were injured, and over nine million displaced. The invasion was followed by the rise of sectarian violence that followed between 2006 and 2010, and the Islamic State group’s occupation in parts of the country from 2013-17. We speak to two researchers who examine the impact the invasion and conflict have had on the lives of Iraqis.

Featuring Sana Murrani, associate professor in spatial practice with a background in architecture and urban design at the University of Plymouth, UK, and Inna Rudolf, senior research fellow at the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation and a postdoctoral research fellow at the Centre for the Study of Divided Societies, King's College London in the UK. 

This episode of The Conversation Weekly was produced and written by Mend Mariwany, who is also the show’s executive producer. Sound design is by Eloise Stevens, and our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. Full credits for this episode are available here. Sign up here for a free daily newsletter from The Conversation.

Further reading: 

• It’s been 20 years since the US invaded Iraq – long enough for my undergraduate students to see it as a relic of the past
• Young people in the Middle East struggle to see a promising future
• Iraq food protests against spiralling prices echo early stages of the Arab Spring