Q&A: Iraq sanctions

Britain and the United States have announced a review of the sanctions still in place against Iraq.

More than 10 years after they were first imposed, BBC News Online looks at what these sanctions are, and asks if they are achieving their aim.

Q: Why is Iraq subject to sanctions?

Sanctions were imposed by the UN Security Council to force Iraq to leave Kuwait, which it occupied in 1990.

When that aim was achieved militarily the sanctions were kept in force to make Iraq comply with remaining UN resolutions such as the release of Kuwaiti PoWs and - most significantly - to disarm its weapons of mass destruction.

The Security Council banned the export of almost all goods from Iraq. Financial support and commercial flights were also banned.

Food and medicine have never been banned under the sanctions regime, but Iraq has claimed it was unable to afford sufficient supplies to ensure the health of the nation.

Q: Can Iraq sell oil?

The original UN resolution completely banned Iraq from selling its main export, oil, on the international market. But the gradual relaxation of the embargo has led to an increasing amount of oil being sold.

In 1996, Iraq accepted the UN's oil-for-food programme, which allowed it to sell limited amounts of oil to buy more food and humanitarian supplies.

This limit was raised over time and to date Iraq has sold over $39 billion worth of oil under the programme.

Q: How effective have the sanctions been?

Sanctions have had a devastating affect on the health and infrastructure of Iraq, but they have failed to achieve the comprehensive elimination of Iraq's biological, chemical and nuclear weapons that was their goal.

Since the Gulf War, Iraq has played a bizarre game of hide-and-seek over weapons inspections, with hurdles being repeatedly put in the path of UN inspectors. The matter is still unresolved.

Critics argue that sanctions have also done little to achieve their unstated aim - to weaken and ultimately unseat the Iraqi president, Saddam Hussein. In fact, to many people's eyes, he is stronger than ever.

An additional problem is that Iraq has been able to circumvent many of the UN restrictions, and members of the regime have enriched themselves hugely, by smuggling oil out of the country and consumer goods in.

Q: What are the no-fly zones?

Two no-fly zones were established after the Gulf War to protect the Shi'a Muslims in southern Iraq and the Kurds in the north. US, British and - until recently - French aircraft have policed the designated zones, sometimes attacking Iraqi targets on the ground.

Unlike trade sanctions, no-fly zones have not been specifically authorised by a UN resolution. But advocates argue that patrol flights are needed in the interests of peace and security, to protect the vulnerable minority groups and Iraq's neighbours.

Baghdad claims that more than 300 civilians have died in US and UK attacks since 1998, a figure which Western sources have denied.

The situation has been complicated further by the fact that commercial flights have recently resumed within the no-fly zones.

Q: What will happen now?

Support for sanctions is waning and a large number of countries oppose the flight ban, leaving Britain and the US looking increasingly isolated in their belief in the tough line on Iraq.

In response to this isolation, the two western allies are reviewing their position on sanctions.

Their aim is to eliminate the damaging allegation that sanctions hurt the Iraqi people, while leaving the government untouched. This has given rise to a search for "smart" sanctions which target the regime.

But both countries maintain that there is no question of sanctions being lifted altogether until Iraq is in full compliance with UN resolutions.