London, UK, March 19 2007 – On the fourth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq, the global Islamic political party, Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain, has launched a report entitled "Iraq: A New Way Forward" that charts a new way forward for the Middle East and wider Islamic world. The report is being widely circulated amongst thinkers, academics, journalists, columnists, politicians and think tanks.

The report comprehensively refutes the false justifications for the continued foreign intervention in Iraq – including the need for foreign forces to referee Iraq's sectarian conflict, the idea that more chaos would arise if troops left and the notion that Western governments have the moral authority for nation building. The report also argues that "any discussion of withdrawal from only Iraq will not serve to end the legacy of Western colonialism in the Middle East" because "for the long term stability of the region it is essential that foreign troops withdraw from the entire region, for their meddling has led to almost a century of tyrannical rule, brutal occupation and instability."

The report advocates the withdrawal of all foreign military personnel in Iraq and the wider region, an end to the West's support of dictatorial leaders in the region, allowing the Muslim world to decide its own political destiny without interference, freeing the region's vast energy reserves from the control of monarchies and multinationals, recognition of the illegality of the occupation of Palestine and an end to double standards over nuclear power in the region.

Speaking ahead of the report's launch, Dr Imran Waheed, media representative of Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain, said, "We believe the steps outlined in this report are a viable blueprint for breaking the deadlock and bringing new hope to the region and stability and security to the rest of the world. What is abundantly clear in the Middle East is that "staying the course" or trying again what has failed in the past, is not an acceptable strategy. Redeploying American forces from Iraq to Kuwait or the wider region for instance would be merely a cosmetic move. Unless the scourge of foreign occupation ends the region will continue to remain in the dysfunctional state it currently is. Once foreign occupation is ended, the region can then independently tackle the innumerable other challenges it faces head on."

"In the light of this report, Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain and the Muslims of Britain call for the return of the Islamic Caliphate which will end the cycle of foreign occupation, dictatorship and war which has ravaged a region that previously prospered for over a thousand years under the stability of Islamic governance."

NOTES TO EDITORS:

(1) Download Iraq: A New Way Forward
 

(2) Prominent members of Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain will be in Parliament Square on Wednesday 21st March between 11 am and 3 pm to discuss the report with politicians, journalists and academics.

(3) Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain will present the report and outline the way forward for Iraq at a public seminar on Friday March 30th 2007 at 7 pm. The venue will be Friends Meeting House, Euston Road, London WC1.

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