U.S. and coalition forces began their campaign into Iraq to remove the murderous regime of Saddam Hussein and his sons from power on 19 March, 2003. The conflict was initiated with devastating bombing campaigns filled with ‘shock and awe’ that left many hundreds, if not thousands, of Iraqi civilians dead. Since that time, the estimated number of civilian casualties has risen to an estimated 6,000. This essay covers the aftermath of the conflict in and around Baghdad, and the attempts by the people of Iraq to piece together their fractured lives – burying their dead, mourning their losses and trying to come to grips with the coalition effort to “free” them from a tyrannical regime.

This picture essay encompasses 21 April to 30 May, 2003, in coverage for Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service, a wire service with newspaper and magazine clients worldwide.

Ed: * The October 2004 Lancet estimate that civilian deaths due to the war exceeds 100,000, is considered ‘conservative’ by people who led the study. http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99996596