LONDON -- The removal of the evil despotism of Saddam Hussein in Iraq is an important benefit for the peoples of Iraq and the world in general. The ending of his regime will be welcomed by some neighboring countries that felt threatened by Iraq. It should in the long run be beneficial to the Arabs as a whole, but there have been serious costs for Iraq and for the world.
These costs are not just the financial costs of waging the war. Significant though these have been in terms of expenditure by the United States and Britain, the biggest cost has been in human lives and misery. The military casualties on the allied side were relatively light although no one should forget that each death in combat leaves a bereaved family for whom knowing that the cause was a just one may be small consolation.
We do not yet know the extent of casualties on the Iraqi side. Significant numbers of Saddam Hussein's Republican Guards were almost certainly eliminated (we need not mourn these greatly) as well as some conscripts who were forced against their will to fight for a dictator. Some missiles went inevitably astray and innocent civilians were killed or injured.