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VOA News
http://www.voanews.com/
Wednesday June 4, 2003

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British Prime Minister Tony Blair says his government will cooperate with a parliamentary investigation into the intelligence on Iraqi weapons of mass destruction which he used to justify war.

Mr. Blair, speaking before the House of Commons Wednesday, described as "completely and utterly untrue" a media report that his office had redrafted an intelligence report to emphasize a claim that Iraq could deploy weapons of mass destruction almost immediately.

A British parliamentary committee says it will investigate whether Mr. Blair's government presented accurate information about Iraq's weapons before deciding to go to war. So far, no such weapons have been found in Iraq.

Critics have accused Prime Minister Tony Blair of exaggerating the intelligence to justify sending troops to join the U.S.-led war in Iraq. But British officials deny misleading the public in any way regarding Iraq's weapons programs. British parliamentary leader John Reid blamed what he called rogue elements within Britain's intelligence community for trying to discredit the prime minister.

Meanwhile, Some U.S. lawmakers are calling for a similar probe into the Bush administration's use of intelligence on Iraq. The New York Times Wednesday reported the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency is reviewing a pre-war intelligence report that concluded Iraq possessed biological and chemical weapons.

In Iraq, a team of seven inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency left for Baghdad Wednesday to conduct an investigation into reports of looting at Iraq's main nuclear facility. The scientists are expected to arrive Friday to begin a probe into reports of looting at the Tuwaitha nuclear site, 50 kilometers south of the Iraqi capital.

Some information for this report provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.

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