London: Former Prime Minister Tony Blair
led Britain into the Iraq war even as he was told that Iraqi
dictator Saddam Hussein had no weapons of mass destruction, an
inquiry into the 2003 conflict was informed.
Blair received intelligence that Saddam`s weapons of
mass destruction had been "dismantled" 10 days before Britain
invaded Iraq, the inquiry into the controversial war has been
told.
The British Foreign Office did not believe Iraq had
nuclear missiles, but Blair told parliament that Saddam was a
threat to security in the Middle East because he still had
chemical and biological weapons which could be launched at 45
minutes’ notice.
The staff warned that the Iraqi dictator’s nuclear
programme had been dismantled and there was no evidence he had
chemical or biological weapons.
However, despite the briefings, the then Prime
Minister ordered the troops to join the American-led offensive
six years ago, the Daily Express reported.
William Ehrman, Foreign Office director of
international security at the time, said ministers were
repeatedly warned intelligence on Iraq’s weapons was "patchy".
"We did, I think on March 10, get a report that
chemical weapons might have remained disassembled and Saddam
hadn’t yet ordered their assembly," Ehrman was quoted as
saying by the British tabloid.
"There was also a suggestion that Iraq might lack
warheads capable of effective dispersal of agents," he said.
PTI
