U.S. has Invaded and/or Bombed 14 Muslim Countries Since 1980 [View all]
I guess cuz 13 is just, well... Unlucky!
http://www.allgov.com/news/us-and-the-world/us-has-invaded-andor-bombed-14-muslim-countries-since-1980-141110?news=854775
Subsequent events have taken the American military force into Libya (1981, 1986, 1989, 2011), Lebanon (1983), Kuwait (1991), Iraq (1991-2011, 2014-), Somalia (1992-1993, 2007-), Bosnia (1995), Saudi Arabia (1991, 1996), Afghanistan (1998, 2001-), Sudan (1998), Kosovo (1999), Yemen (2000, 2002-), Pakistan (2004-) and now Syria.
Few of these adventures have ended well, starting with the bombing of the Marine barracks in Lebanon in 1983 that killed 299 Marines and French servicemen, through Libya, which has descended into chaos since the U.S. intervened there in 2011 and now in Iraq and Syria, where the war begun by President George W. Bush for the stated purpose of finding (ultimately non-existent) weapons of mass destruction has spawned the Islamic States capture of vast amounts of territory in those countries.
Want to measure what Americas war for the Middle East has accomplished through its first 13 iterations? The Islamic State has to rank prominently on any list of achievements, Bacevich wrote. If Iraq possessed minimally effective security forces, Islamic State militants wouldnt have a chance. But the Iraqi army we created wont fight, in considerable measure because the Iraqi government we created doesnt govern.
And now, how will Obamas requested use of force end? Probably not well, according to Bacevich. Obamas betthe same bet made by each of his predecessors, going back to Carteris that the skillful application of U.S. military might can somehow provide a way out of this dilemma. They were wrong, and so is he.