U.K. Panel Rips Blair on Iraqi Weapons
LONDON - An influential committee of lawmakers criticized Prime Minister Tony Blair's government Tuesday for publishing a dossier on Iraq's weapons program without first clearing its contents with British intelligence services.
The dossier, which set out evidence about Saddam Hussein's alleged chemical and biological weapons programs, was published early this year. It included material copied from an American student's thesis which was posted on the Internet, causing embarrassment for the government.
The Parliamentary Intelligence and Security Committee, which oversees the work of Britain's intelligence agencies, said in its annual report that the document had not been endorsed by intelligence chiefs before it was published. It was titled "Iraq: Its Infrastructure of Concealment, Deception and Intimidation."