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★阿修羅♪
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今やブレアもケチョンケチョン、、。【Steve Bell の漫画です。】
http://www.guardian.co.uk/cartoons
15.07.03: Steve Bell on the Iraq intelligence row
MPs in final bid to force inquiry
Opposition demands judicial report on dossier row
Michael White and Richard Norton-Taylor
Tuesday July 15, 2003
The Guardian
Opposition MPs last night launched a desperate final bid to force Tony Blair to
concede an independent inquiry on the intelligence controversy surrounding the
Iraq war before Westminster's summer break gives Downing Street a seven-week
respite from its critics.
The Tories announced a Commons debate - to be held tomorrow - on the highly
critical foreign affairs committee's investigation.
The committee itself will today re-examine David Kelly, the weapons expert whom
No 10 says was the source of the original BBC claim that Downing Street had "
sexed up" last September's pro-war dossier.
With Charles Kennedy, the Liberal Democrat leader, writing to Mr Blair about "
further revelations" casting fresh doubt on the intelligence dossiers, both he
and Iain Duncan Smith are demanding an inquiry under the chairmanship of a judge.
Mr Kennedy said the inquiry should have six months to report its finding.
Mr Blair and his closet allies, notably Jack Straw, the foreign secretary,
insist that the foreign affairs select committee and the intelligence and
security committee (ISC) - now examining the past 10 years years intelligence
reports on Iraq in private - will suffice.
But middle-ranking ministers, fearful of the damage the issue is doing to voter
trust in the government, are privately wondering if the running sore would heal
more easily if there is a short, high-level inquiry -like the Franks report
which examined bad intelligence before the Argentinian invasion of the Falkland
Islands in 1982. The summer break could make things worse, some fear.
It emerged last night that Dr Kelly, who admitted talking to the BBC reporter
Andrew Gilligan, will only be quizzed by the committee's MPs on those dealings -
not his wider WMD expertise - and that Gilligan has written to the committee
saying he has nothing to add to his earlier evidence.
In theory the MPs could obtain a Commons resolution that would force him to
attend. In reality they will only invite him back if Dr Kelly's testimony raises
doubts about how Gilligan - who does not admit Dr Kelly is his "single source"
- interpreted what he was told.
Meanwhile, Mr Straw stood by British claims that Iraq had tried to buy uranium
from Niger.
Though the data is disparaged in Washington, the foreign secretary told Radio 4:
"We believe in the intelligence which was behind the claims made in the
September 24 dossier, yes," while admitting that the source would not let him
share the material with Washington - another pointer to a likely French
connection .
His claim contradicted a diplomatic source who told the Guardian that Britain
had informed the UN that the intelligence on which it based its claim came
entirely in documents subsequently admit ted to have been forged. British
officials told the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency that the only
evidence they had then for the claim were the forged documents, a diplomat
source close to the Vienna-based body said.
"We were given to believe that none of the evidence was based on anything other
than the documents," a diplomatic source said of the meeting with British
officials.
He said the officials had been specifically asked whether they had any other
evidence. "They said no," the sources told the Guardian.
The description contradicts repeated statements made by British ministers,
including that the claim in the September dossier was based on "separate
intelligence", different from the forged documents.
The issue is creating a political storm in the US because the allegation was
included in President Bush's state of the union address in January where it was
attributed to Britain.
The White House and the CIA director, George Tenet, have said it should not have
appeared in the speech.
Diplomatic sources were yesterday pointing the finger at France as a source both
of the original forged documents and any additional intelligence passed to MI6.
"France is involved in some way," one diplomat said.
France has close links with Niger, its former west African colony, which
supplies it with uranium for the French nuclear power and weapons programme.
Foreign affairs committee report
Read the MPs' report in full (pdf)
07.07.2003: Conclusions and recommendations
07.07.2003: Reaction in quotes
Related stories
07.07.2003: Britain 'knew uranium claims were false'
07.07.2003: Experts grow more sceptical about extent of threat
07.07.2003: Governors back BBC in row over Iraq dossier
07.07.2003: Peter Preston: It's a charade and we all know it
07.07.2003: MPs clear Campbell of doctoring dossier
The dossiers
The government's September dossier on Iraqi WMD (pdf)
The government's February dossier on Iraqi WMD (pdf)
Full texts
07.07.2003: The BBC governors' statement
07.07.2003: Extract from committee report on Andrew Gilligan and Alastair
Campbell
Explained
03.06.2003: The different government inquiries
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politics.editor@guardianunlimited.co.uk
Special reports
Iraq
Politics and Iraq
The road to war
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