GZERO World Clips
From combat pilot to Senator: Tammy Duckworth's reflections on the Iraq War
From combat pilot to Senator: Tammy Duckworth's reflections on the Iraq War | GZERO World
March 19, 2023
Reflecting on the 20-year anniversary of the start of the Iraq War, Senator Tammy Duckworth on GZERO World shares her personal experience as a combat pilot and how losing both her legs during the war pushed her to keep serving her country through government. As a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, she stresses the importance of keeping the promises made to veterans, saying that "breaking those promises impacts military readiness."
Senator Duckworth acknowledges the progress made in Iraq, noting that "people are significantly better off than they were under Saddam Hussein." However, she believes that Iraq "is somewhat unfinished business" due to the high unemployment rates faced by young people, and hopes it can become a "friend and ally" to the United States.
The Senator also expresses concerns about the influence of Iran and factions within Iraq, including within the government. She highlights the ongoing issues in the Kurdistan region, where the Kurds face negative oversight from the government in Baghdad while trying to run their autonomous area responsibly. According to Senator Duckworth, "there is still much work to be done in Iraq," even after two decades.
Watch the GZERO World episode: Iraq War's legacy: Loss of lives, rise of ISIS, & political turmoil
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Participants hold placards during a protest to condemn the U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran and commemorate students killed in a strike on a girls' primary school in Minab in southern Iran on February 28, in front of the U.S. embassy in Seoul, South Korea, March 12, 2026.
REUTERS/Kim Soo-hyeon
175: The number of people killed at an Iranian girls’ school in a strike on Feb. 28. Initial intelligence reports suggest that the US was to blame for the strike, per the New York Times, after the military used a now-defunct set of coordinates to deploy the hit.
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