Iraq Weapons Claims Criticised. A Wee Bit.

The all-party foreign affairs committe has spoken. It appears that no-one at all is to blame for the inclusion of and emphasis on the false claim that Saddam Hussein’s weapons programme was sufficiently advanced that he could deploy chemical weapons in 45 minutes, which became something of a cornerstone of government propaganda in the run up to the invasion.

Alistair Campbell, meanwhile, has been cleared of ‘sexing-up’ intelligence reports, albeit by a single vote. The BBC, who are being taken to task by Blair et al for suggesting same, remain unrepentant. Quite right too - a journalist cannot be blamed if their high-level, previously reliable intelligence source went on to make bogus claims. On the plus side, by forcing the issue of an apology, the government are managing to highlight the murky goings on that surrounded attempts to persuade the public to back the invasion of Iraq.

It’s also worth noting that the committee plan to further investigate on the ground in Iraq - we can doubtless look forward to another non-conclusive fudge.

Posted at 9pm on 07/07/03 by Jack Mottram to the politics category.
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