Mariner, there is NO embargo on medicine or food, or on trade to suppply the Iraqi ppl with medicine or food. The only sanction is imposed by Saddam Hussein - he is the Iraqi government who are refusing to buy them. What's the West supposed to do, force him to buy them?

The tactic is intended to get back his wealth at the expense of his ppl. His method can best be described as "I'll keep killing my own ppl with starvation and lack of medicine, until you give me back my trade." He refuses to buy food or medicine until full trade is re-established - this is pure moral blackmail. And we all know that the first thing to be traded would not be medicine, it would be weapons, missiles, supplies for making poison gas, nuclear weapon parts, etc..

The sanctions may not be biting as deep for Hussein as for his country, but you can at least say that they've prevented him acquiring missile systems to launch nuclear and chemical attacks on Israel, Turkey and anyone else in range. So, a question - is it a good idea to continue the sanctions so that Hussein doesn't have the facilities to launch weapons of mass destruction which would kill millions? Or do we say "Go ahead, buy all the nukes you want" and just hope he won't decide to use them?

Grab.