Tim Blair

WHY DID Iraqis trash their

WHY DID Iraqis trash their museum? Robert Fisk wanted to know, so the WSJ's Eric Gibson helps him out:

In short, Iraqis laid waste to the museum in Baghdad because it had become the symbol of a hated regime. And little wonder. Saddam stole his country's treasures, hauling off truckloads for his enrichment. But he also misappropriated Iraq's history by making it a tool of his personality cult.

In time some of those objects may find their way back to Baghdad. But with Saddam now gone, their past is once again their own.