Simon Jenkins recounts the awful truth here.

"[Iraq] has been turned by two of the most powerful and civilised nations on Earth into the most hellish place on Earth. Armies claiming to bring democracy and prosperity have brought bloodshed and a misery worse than under the most ruthless modern dictator. This must be the stupidest paradox in modern history. Neither America nor Britain has the guts to rule Iraq properly, yet they lack the guts to leave.

"Blair speaks of staying until the job is finished. What job? The only job he can mean is his own."