Movie Review: Green Zone

The year 2003. Warrant Officer Damon, a convoy leader in search for WMDs, could not find them in three successive places Intel indicated. He becomes reluctantly suspicious and questions, at a large meeting with Generals, how they get their info. His superiors  close ranks and cut him off. The Global pressure about proving the WMD intel not materializing in his searches in Bagdad. 

He continues probing  with help of a knowledgable CIA agent, who is wary of Washington’s intentions. During his searches, Damon is taken prisoner by Iraqi General Al-Rawi's men. Meanwhile, Poundstone (Pentagon official on site) announces the Washington decision to disband the entire Iraqi army - an announcement made to upset Al-Rawi's men and coax them into killing Damon. The CIA agent knows Washington’s decision  would be a national disaster  which he earlier shared with Damon.  

Al-Rawi tells captive Damon that there had been no WMD program since the First Persian Gulf War 1990,  and that he explained this sometime ago at the initial meeting with Poundstone who had passed it on to Washington.  Poundstone  is now knowingly colluding with Washington to keep reporting to field officers that Al-Rawi had confirmed WMDs---so that Iraq can be invaded and the convoys can continue looking for the non-existent WMDs.

Damon is rescued, confronts Poundstone with his discovery and the latter tells him it doesn’t matter if there are no WMDs. In his final scene, the camera pans out through the window of the convoy showing huge oil facilities for the first time: the real reason of U.S. pre-emptive invasion.

History           

          The US did not get UN Security Council approval for its invasion, the only approval that could legitimize it. It occupied Iraq from one end of the country to the other for 8 years, forcing the government to privatize the oil industry and accept multinational – largely U.S.-based oil companies – ownership. This endeavor was less than successful because of the violence unleashed by the invasion. The US military finally was forced to leave because the Iraqi government refused to give immunity to American soldiers for their many crimes. The film was based on a book by the author who was there during those years.  

   The Wanderer