Archive for 'Intelligence' Category
Belief, evidence and proof – from Iraq to Syria
by Chris Ames The suggestion that the Syrian opposition, as well as the Syrian government itself, may have used chemical weapons continues to provide an interesting lens through which to consider the concepts of evidence, proof and indeed belief when it comes to intelligence on Iraq’s alleged weapons of mass destruction. There has been some [...]
Cameron: Iraq Inquiry redundant
by Chris Ames The situation in Syria and allegations that the Syrian government has used chemical weapons has brought inevitable comparisons with Iraq, with the obvious suggestion that Western governments are more reluctant as a result both to make intelligence-based claims about weapons of mass destruction and to intervene militarily on the basis of such claims. [...]
Howard shoots Blair down under
by Chris Ames In the ongoing debate in Australia about whether there should be an inquiry into that country’s participation in the invasion of Iraq, former PM John Howard is to make a speech defending his actions. A version of the speech is online on theaustralian.com website, with the predictable title Errors were made but [...]
If you just take the executive summary
by Chris Ames The BBC’s story on Tony Blair saying that he has no regrets over the invasion of Iraq largely concentrates on his comparison of the cost of the war in human lives, compared to what Blair thinks might have happened had Saddam have been left in power. The orignal justification for the war [...]
Butler not told about Habbush or Sabri
by Chris Ames Tonight’s Panorama (BBC1 10.35 ) takes another look at the way that “key aspects of the secret intelligence used by Downing Street and the White House to justify the invasion were based on fabrication, wishful thinking and lies. ” A lot of the stories about the dodgy sources, including the notorious 45 [...]
The search for the smoking gun
by Chris Ames The Guardian’s latest politics weekly podcast includes a discussion about the legacy of Iraq, including a brief contribution (over the phone) from myself. Invited to say whether a real smoking gun has emerged, I suggested the John Williams draft of the September WMD dossier, which was released five years ago. This document [...]
More on Dossier radio drama
by Chris Ames The BBC has put out some more information about tomorrow’s Radio 4 drama on the September 2002 dossier, which is largely based on the story of former Digest contributor the late Brian Jones. Here’s what the media centre are saying: Saturday Drama: The Iraq Resolution A dramatization of the inside story of [...]
Blair’s last stand on the moral high ground
by Chris Ames The question of whether Tony Blair lied about the intelligence around Iraq’s alleged weapons of mass destruction is one that usually generates more heat than light, with most people believing almost instinctively that he did lie and his defenders, like John Rentoul, taking a different kind of moral high ground and claiming [...]
Can the BBC shed any more light on Iraq?
by Chris Ames The BBC’s two main current affairs programmes are both due to screen programmes marking the 10th anniversary of the invasion, starting with Newsnight on Tuesday night with “Iraq: 10 Years on”. It isn’t clear what new light the programme can throw on the issue. From the trailer it doesn’t look as if [...]
No Honesty, even ten years on
by Chris Ames Today’s Guardian carries a conversation between LibDem Menzies Campbell and former Labour minister Charles Falconer to mark 10 years (almost) since the publication in September 2002 of the notorious dossier on “Iraq’s Weapons of Mass Destruction”. Sadly, even ten years on Falconer feels the need to dodge the truth. When Falconer claims [...]