It may come as no surprise to you, but the Iraq War was one of the most horrifyingly bungled monstrosities in living memory.
Initiated on largely false pretences and resulting in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people and the displacement of many millions more, the war’s only remaining cheerleaders tend to be those who either had a direct hand in it or praised it in the media at the time.
In case this is somehow a surprise to you, you’re in luck: the Iraq Inquiry – a public inquiry into the UK‘s role in the war that was ordered by former PM Gordon Brown in 2009 – has just delivered its 2.5 million word verdict. It is excoriating.
Though it refers largely to the UK’s involvement, the report is a handy overview of the series of escalating fuck-ups and deliberate misinformation that led everybody into that war – including, of course, Australia.
The report, chaired by former public servant Sir John Chilcot, found that British PM Tony Blair chose to join the war to depose Saddam Hussein before all peaceful options had been exhausted, deliberately exaggerated the threat of the Iraqi regime, ignored advice and warnings on postwar planning, and did not do enough to document Iraqi casualties.
It’s extremely damning – and even more damning that people expected. Some thought it would be a slap on the wrist for Blair. Nope. He cops it hard. Not that many of these things haven’t been said about him before, but there’s no bouncing back from this.
He made a two hour address after the release of the findings.
“The intelligence was wrong. I express more sorrow, regret & apology than you may ever know”https://t.co/lOjx5zJlK8 https://t.co/maUvVdp94G
— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) July 6, 2016
He’s copping particular heat for a previously unreleased note that he sent to George W. Bush which said “I will be with you, whatever“, suggesting that Blair was willing to do whatever Bush told him to do, regardless of consequence or justificaiton.
Current Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, who has pressed for Blair to be prosecuted for war crimes, has apologised for his party’s involvement in the war.
We’ll keep you posted on the specific findings of the report as they are revealed.
Source: The Guardian.
Photo: Getty Images.
