Chilcot report delivers damning verdict on British role in Iraq War

London (CNN)A long-awaited official inquiry delivered a devastating indictment of Britain's decision to invade Iraq Wednesday, finding that the war was based on flawed intelligence and had been launched before diplomatic options were spent.

The findings of the 2.6 million-word Iraq Inquiry -- widely known as the Chilcot report, for probe chairman John Chilcot -- were released after Chilcot delivered a statement in London Wednesday. He said that Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein posed "no imminent threat" when the U.S-led invasion was launched in March 2003, and that while military action against him "might have been necessary at some point," the "strategy of containment" could have continued for some time.

Chilcot said former British Prime Minister Tony Blair was warned of the risks of regional instability and the rise of terrorism before the invasion of Iraq, but pressed on regardless.

The UK failed to appreciate the complexity of governing Iraq, and did not devote enough forces to the task of securing the country in the wake of the invasion, he added.  "The people of Iraq have suffered greatly," he said.

Blair's decision to invade Iraq was influenced by his interest in protecting the UK's relationship with the United States, Chilcot said. That relationship "does not require unconditional support where our interests and judgments differ," he said.

While the legal basis for the war was "far from satisfactory," the inquiry did not express a view on whether the invasion was legal, he said, arguing that that was a decision for another forum.

The inquiry was commissioned in June 2009 by Blair's successor, Gordon Brown, following pressure from the public and parliament.Charged with examining the build-up to the conflict, the war itself and its bloody aftermath -- over a period from 2001 to 2009 -- the inquiry was initially expected to take a year to complete.Instead it has taken more than seven -- longer than the war itself -- with the final report running to 12 volumes.

Veterans' families: Loved ones died in vain
The families of some of the 179 British service personnel who lost their lives in the Iraq War said they felt their loved ones had died in vain, following the release of the report's findings. "When I look at Iraq on our TV screens today, the 200-plus deaths that took place the other day, I can only conclude that unfortunately and sadly, my son died in vain," Reg Keys, whose son died serving in Iraq, said at a news conference

.Matthew Jury, a lawyer representing families who lost loved ones in the conflict, said his clients are "of course saddened that it appears to have been confirmed that their loved ones died unnecessarily and without just cause or purpose."

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Britain's Parliament approved the war -- ostensibly to remove Saddam Hussein and rid the country of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) -- shortly before the invasion, although United Nations approval was not gained and millions marched in the streets in protest.

Hussein was removed and later executed. But the WMD threat was found to have been exaggerated and the promise to turn a dictatorship into a democracy was never delivered on.

Instead, the country descended into years of vicious sectarian conflict, with large swathes seized by the terror group ISIS.

More than 250,000 people have died violent deaths since the 2003 invasion, according to the Iraq Body Count project, while millions of Iraqis have been made homeless in the conflict with ISIS.


http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/06/europe/uk-iraq-inquiry-chilcot-report/index.html

Last edited by Goose (7/06/2016 8:07 am)