SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
The Pentagon reports that the Afghan conflict costs US taxpayers $45 billion per year. (Photo: Debra Sweet/flickr/cc)
After 9/11: The Staggering Economic and Human Cost of the War on Terror
The war on terror appears more like an endless war
Sep 11, 2018
"Our war on terror begins with Al Qaeda, but it does not end there," President George W. Bush announced on September 20th, 2001, following the 9/11 attacks.
Bush's "War on Terror" did not end with Al Qaeda - it has roared on into an endless conflict spanning the globe, costing hundreds of thousands of lives and trillions of US taxpayers' dollars.
"Americans should not expect one battle," Bush continued, "but a lengthy campaign unlike any other we have ever seen."
Days later, the Bush administration launched its air war. By the end of 2001, the US had dropped 17,500 bombs on Afghanistan.
The War in Afghanistan is now in its 17th year, making it America's longest war. The Pentagon reports that the Afghan conflict costs US taxpayers $45 billion per year.
The human and economic cost of the post-9/11 US War on Terror has been investigated extensively by the Costs of War Project, based out of the Watson Institute of International and Public Affairs at Brown University.
The Project is made up of researchers, legal experts, human rights officials, and physicians whose focus is to reveal the cost of the post-9/11 wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the related conflicts in Pakistan and Syria.
Their research findings are staggering.
The Project's investigations show that at least 370,000 people have been killed in the post 9/11 wars. Project researchers explain that it is likely that many more people have died indirectly due to environmental catastrophes, malnutrition, and broken infrastructure tied to the wars.
In addition, over 10 million Afghan, Iraqi, and Pakistani people have been displaced as war refugees.
The Project calculated the US budgetary costs in the post-9/11 wars to be $5.6 trillion. (In the decade after 9/11, US military spending doubled.)
Their research also shed a light on worldwide US military operations, showing that the US conducted counter-terror operations in 76 centuries around the globe from 2015-2017.
The Project developed a map illustrating drone operations, the deployment of troops, locations of military bases, and training programs - all demonstrating the complex global reach of the US War on Terror.
"Either you are with us or you are with the terrorists," Bush ominously warned in his 2001 speech.
It quickly became clear where Bush's line in the sand was drawn with the Patriot Act, Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo Bay, the administration's military operations.
Nearly two decades have passed since 9/11, and the War on Terror appears more like an Endless War.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Benjamin Dangl
Benjamin Dangl is a Journalism & Communication Lecturer at University of Vermont. He has a PhD in Latin American history from McGill University and has worked as a journalist throughout Latin America for over fifteen years, covering politics and protest movements for outlets such as Common Dreams, The Guardian, Al Jazeera, The Nation, Salon, Vice, and NACLA Report on the Americas. He is the author of the books "The Five Hundred Year Rebellion: Indigenous Movements and the Decolonization of History in Bolivia;" "Dancing with Dynamite: Social Movements and States in Latin America;" "The Price of Fire: Resource Wars and Social Movements in Bolivia," all published by AK Press. Follow him on Twitter: @bendangl
"Our war on terror begins with Al Qaeda, but it does not end there," President George W. Bush announced on September 20th, 2001, following the 9/11 attacks.
Bush's "War on Terror" did not end with Al Qaeda - it has roared on into an endless conflict spanning the globe, costing hundreds of thousands of lives and trillions of US taxpayers' dollars.
"Americans should not expect one battle," Bush continued, "but a lengthy campaign unlike any other we have ever seen."
Days later, the Bush administration launched its air war. By the end of 2001, the US had dropped 17,500 bombs on Afghanistan.
The War in Afghanistan is now in its 17th year, making it America's longest war. The Pentagon reports that the Afghan conflict costs US taxpayers $45 billion per year.
The human and economic cost of the post-9/11 US War on Terror has been investigated extensively by the Costs of War Project, based out of the Watson Institute of International and Public Affairs at Brown University.
The Project is made up of researchers, legal experts, human rights officials, and physicians whose focus is to reveal the cost of the post-9/11 wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the related conflicts in Pakistan and Syria.
Their research findings are staggering.
The Project's investigations show that at least 370,000 people have been killed in the post 9/11 wars. Project researchers explain that it is likely that many more people have died indirectly due to environmental catastrophes, malnutrition, and broken infrastructure tied to the wars.
In addition, over 10 million Afghan, Iraqi, and Pakistani people have been displaced as war refugees.
The Project calculated the US budgetary costs in the post-9/11 wars to be $5.6 trillion. (In the decade after 9/11, US military spending doubled.)
Their research also shed a light on worldwide US military operations, showing that the US conducted counter-terror operations in 76 centuries around the globe from 2015-2017.
The Project developed a map illustrating drone operations, the deployment of troops, locations of military bases, and training programs - all demonstrating the complex global reach of the US War on Terror.
"Either you are with us or you are with the terrorists," Bush ominously warned in his 2001 speech.
It quickly became clear where Bush's line in the sand was drawn with the Patriot Act, Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo Bay, the administration's military operations.
Nearly two decades have passed since 9/11, and the War on Terror appears more like an Endless War.
From Your Site Articles
Benjamin Dangl
Benjamin Dangl is a Journalism & Communication Lecturer at University of Vermont. He has a PhD in Latin American history from McGill University and has worked as a journalist throughout Latin America for over fifteen years, covering politics and protest movements for outlets such as Common Dreams, The Guardian, Al Jazeera, The Nation, Salon, Vice, and NACLA Report on the Americas. He is the author of the books "The Five Hundred Year Rebellion: Indigenous Movements and the Decolonization of History in Bolivia;" "Dancing with Dynamite: Social Movements and States in Latin America;" "The Price of Fire: Resource Wars and Social Movements in Bolivia," all published by AK Press. Follow him on Twitter: @bendangl
"Our war on terror begins with Al Qaeda, but it does not end there," President George W. Bush announced on September 20th, 2001, following the 9/11 attacks.
Bush's "War on Terror" did not end with Al Qaeda - it has roared on into an endless conflict spanning the globe, costing hundreds of thousands of lives and trillions of US taxpayers' dollars.
"Americans should not expect one battle," Bush continued, "but a lengthy campaign unlike any other we have ever seen."
Days later, the Bush administration launched its air war. By the end of 2001, the US had dropped 17,500 bombs on Afghanistan.
The War in Afghanistan is now in its 17th year, making it America's longest war. The Pentagon reports that the Afghan conflict costs US taxpayers $45 billion per year.
The human and economic cost of the post-9/11 US War on Terror has been investigated extensively by the Costs of War Project, based out of the Watson Institute of International and Public Affairs at Brown University.
The Project is made up of researchers, legal experts, human rights officials, and physicians whose focus is to reveal the cost of the post-9/11 wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the related conflicts in Pakistan and Syria.
Their research findings are staggering.
The Project's investigations show that at least 370,000 people have been killed in the post 9/11 wars. Project researchers explain that it is likely that many more people have died indirectly due to environmental catastrophes, malnutrition, and broken infrastructure tied to the wars.
In addition, over 10 million Afghan, Iraqi, and Pakistani people have been displaced as war refugees.
The Project calculated the US budgetary costs in the post-9/11 wars to be $5.6 trillion. (In the decade after 9/11, US military spending doubled.)
Their research also shed a light on worldwide US military operations, showing that the US conducted counter-terror operations in 76 centuries around the globe from 2015-2017.
The Project developed a map illustrating drone operations, the deployment of troops, locations of military bases, and training programs - all demonstrating the complex global reach of the US War on Terror.
"Either you are with us or you are with the terrorists," Bush ominously warned in his 2001 speech.
It quickly became clear where Bush's line in the sand was drawn with the Patriot Act, Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo Bay, the administration's military operations.
Nearly two decades have passed since 9/11, and the War on Terror appears more like an Endless War.
From Your Site Articles
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.