Opinions on the Iraq invasion permeated every sector of society, here and abroad. Find out what some of the world's most famous faces had to say about the war with this gallery from MSN UK News.
Five years have passed since the beginning of the Second Gulf War, a conflict that has left thousands of people dead and cost in excess of a trillion US dollars - more than World War II.
Through the eyes of the experts, MSN UK News examines the fallout from a decision that divided our nation and brought more than one world leader to his knees.
The Iraq invasion, five years on: MSN UK News special report
Before the Iraq war, the initials WMD meant little outside defence and diplomatic circles. But in the years since, those three letters have become emblematic of the distrust and disillusionment felt by many in Britain and the US at the way their governments took them to war.
Five years ago, Tony Blair - then prime minister - announced that Britain was about to go to war, a decision that divided our nation and left tens of thousands of people dead. Read the speech that launched a bloody episode in Iraq's history that was to last even longer than the Second World War.
Lindsey German, one of the founders of the Stop the War Coalition – a British anti-war movement established in the wake of the terror attacks of 9/11 – assesses the legacy of the last five years.
Jabbar Hasan is director of the Iraqi Association, a UK-based charity that promotes the country’s diverse culture. Here, he gives an Iraqi’s perspective on the events of the Second Gulf War.
How many civilian deaths have been documented since the onset of war? How many British troops are currently stationed on Iraqi soil? Which UN resolution was Iraq declared to be in breach of in 2002?
Britain is one of 26 countries that make up the multi-national force in Iraq. After the US, it has the second largest representation. At its height, the number of British troops in Iraq numbered some 46,000. After the initial invasion, the number dropped to 8,600.
Or, could I learn to stop worrying and love Iraq? A look at the next five years, by Newsweek.
In one of the most blistering attacks on a serving government by military top brass in living memory, defence chiefs accused Gordon Brown of treating Britain’s armed forces “with contempt” - prompting one civilian to suggest the warmongers of Whitehall should try a spell on the front line.
It is five years since then Prime Minister Tony Blair announced that Britain was going to war, joining the US-led invasion of Iraq. What is your opinion of the events of the ongoing Second Gulf War?
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Iraq invasion: 5th anniversary
- Five years since the US-led invasion of Iraq began, has the second Gulf War been an outstanding success or an embarrassing failure?
- Outstanding success: Iraq has become a much better place since the toppling of Saddam Hussein
11% - Embarrassing failure: we had no right to attack Iraq and the war has done more harm than good
60% - I'm not sure: there's no doubt Saddam was a brutal dictator, but that doesn't justify the scale of the attack
28%
- Outstanding success: Iraq has become a much better place since the toppling of Saddam Hussein
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