Blair and the Iraq War.

There is a striking parallel between the charges made against Blair and those against Bush in connection with the decision to invade Iraq. A British intelligence chief, dropped a key sentence from the pre-war dossier on Iraq's weapons days before publication, after being prompted by Downing Street - adding to evidence of political manipulation of intelligence. He did it at the suggestion of Jonathan Powell, chief of staff to Prime Minister Tony Blair, an inquiry heard on Tuesday.

The sentence said that former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was prepared to use chemical and biological weapons "if he believes his regime is under threat." Powell argued that phrase suggested Iraq was only a threat if attacked. The justification Blair gave for war - Iraq's weapons of mass destruction - has come under intense scrutiny at the inquiry into the apparent suicide of Iraq weapons expert David Kelly.

His death and the inquiry has plunged Blair into the worst political crisis of his six-year tenure. In an email to John Scarlett, chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee, Powell noted that the sentence "backs up the argument that there is no CBW (chemical, biological weapons) threat and we will only create one if we attack him. I think you should redraft that para." Scarlett said the change was made in line with intelligence received and rejected the suggestion that Downing Street's "intervention" forced the change.

The latest revelation will do little to boost public trust in Blair. (Reuters, 9/25/03).

RH:
Since this was written, Blair was given a rousing reception at the Labour conference in Bournmouth. It is useless to cry over spilt milk. We should now concentrate on what to do, not what has been done.