U.S. out of Iraq

last updated 8 January 2015

Madrid

Tens of thousands of Spaniards rallied in Spanish cities this week to protest the U.S. occupation of Iraq with shouts of “Where are the weapons? They are in the U.S.!” The demonstrations marked the anniversary of last year’s much larger protests against the invasion, which the Spanish government supported but most Spaniards opposed. Prime Minister José Aznar suffered a huge drop in popularity because of the issue and is not running for re-election. The top opposition candidate in next month’s elections has pledged to bring Spain’s troops home if he wins. Spain has 1,300 peacekeepers serving in Iraq.