Blair's case for Iraq invasion was self-serving, lawyers tell Chilcot inquiry

[Hopeless Romantic]

The Blair government undermined the UN, bowed to US political pressure and relied on self-serving arguments to justify its decision to invade Iraq, according to evidence to the Chilcot inquiry by international lawyers.

A key theme of the evidence, yet to be published, is that the government weakened the UN, damaging the country's reputation in the process – arguments made by Ed Miliband in his inaugural speech to the Labour conference.

Ralph Zacklin, the British-born UN assistant secretary general for legal affairs at the time, has told the inquiry that the attorney general, Lord Goldsmith, failed to strike a proper balance "between the underlying political concerns of the government and respect for the rule of law" in adopting the view that a fresh UN security council resolution was not needed. Goldsmith's interpretation of previous UN resolutions was "self-serving".

"The damage to the UK and credibility of the security council was very significant", he told the Guardian today. "It was pretty clear was under a lot of pressure".

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/sep/30/iraq-war-inquiry

[oldironside]

1. Thanks for posting...

.. but we all knew this in 2003. Think back. I know I was fuming. How could everyone else not see it? Angry doesn't cover it.

[Jeneral2885]

2. and

most of the Labour Party fell for it.

[LeftishBrit]

3. And water was wet.