Chilcot report being released today

[caervek]

Apologies if there is already a thread but couldn't find anything which is surprising for such a big story.

For those that don't know today is the day the 2.6 million word Chilcot report finally gets released after over seven years of waiting. The ICJ (the hague) have already ruled out criminal prosecutions of Blair/Bush however if it's as bad as people suspect then there is a good chance that Blair will face charges in the UK or at least impeachment and banning from public office.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-politics-36570120

*EDIT*

Here is the link to the report: http://www.iraqinquiry.org.uk/ (which will go live at 11:35 BST)

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Here is a rundown of what will be happening today.

11:05 - Sir John Chilcot will make a statement on his report and his findings
11:35 - The report will be published on the internet
11:45 - Families of soldiers killed in Iraq will hold a press conference
12:00 - Prime Minister’s Questions, where David Cameron may face questions about the report's contents
12:30 - David Cameron is due to give a formal statement on the Iraq Inquiry, and that will be followed by a statement from the leader of the opposition, Jeremy Corbyn.
Later today - Tony Blair is expected to give his reaction to the report.

[Cosmic Janitor]

Is Blair even still in office? o0

Edit: Ah yes the UK disposed him in one of the side committees of the EU - the European Council on Tolerance and Reconciliation, but that one is non-govt, so what kind of public office can the UK bar him from? For all intents and purposes he has retired from UK politics.

[Deleted]

Apologies if there is already a thread but couldn't find anything which is surprising for such a big story.

For those that don't know today is the day the 2.6 million word Chilcot report finally gets released after over seven years of waiting. The ICJ (the hague) have already ruled out criminal prosecutions of Blair/Bush however if it's as bad as people suspect then there is a good chance that Blair will face charges in the UK or at least impeachment and banning from public office.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-politics-36570120

*EDIT*

Here is the link to the report: http://www.iraqinquiry.org.uk/ (which will go live at 11:35 BST)

Curious how many Brits are going to actually read a 2.6 million document if it doesn't have sex or magic

[Deleted]

Curious how many Brits are going to actually read a 2.6 million document if it doesn't have sex or magic

The way Blair is going to avoid any consequences for misleading parliament and starting an illegal war will be quite magical

[caervek]

Ka-Boom, there goes Tony's career.

We have concluded that the UK chose to join the invasion of Iraq before the peaceful options for disarmament had been exhausted. Military action at that time was not a last resort.

And it gets worse:

We have, however, concluded that the circumstances in which it was decided that there was a legal basis for UK military action were far from satisfactory.

The judgements about the severity of the threat posed by Iraq's weapons of mass destruction - WMD - were presented with a certainty that was not justified

Despite explicit warnings, the consequences of the invasion were underestimated. The planning and preparations for Iraq after Saddam Hussein were wholly inadequate.

The government failed to achieve its stated objectives.

[Independent voter]

The British people did all that?

[caervek]

Well it definitely looks like Blair is going to be having some lawsuits coming his way at the very least:

Mr Blair had been warned, however, that military action would increase the threat from Al Qaeda to the UK and to UK interests. He had also been warned that an invasion might lead to Iraq's weapons and capabilities being transferred into the hands of terrorists.

It is now clear that policy on Iraq was made on the basis of flawed intelligence and assessments. They were not challenged, and they should have been.

Mr Blair told the Inquiry that the difficulties encountered in Iraq after the invasion could not have been known in advance. We do not agree that hindsight is required. The risks of internal strife in Iraq, active Iranian pursuit of its interests, regional instability, and Al Qaeda activity in Iraq, were each explicitly identified before the invasion.

Ministers were aware of the inadequacy of US plans, and concerned about the inability to exert significant influence on US planning. Mr Blair eventually succeeded only in the narrow goal of securing President Bush's agreement that there should be UN authorisation of the post-conflict role.

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NB: For those not following all this, the report confirms that the UK/USA jumped the gun on invading, it wasn't legal, the reasons were bogus, warnings were not adhered too, intelligence made it clear the reasons were bogus before the invasion, and the resulting terrorist attacks and the rise of ISIS were not only directly caused by the invasion but predicted beforehand.

[Northern Goblin]

Looks like the intelligence community and advisors to Blair and the cabinet are being thrown under the bus here.

So's Bush and his administration.

[caervek]

Looks like the intelligence community and advisors to Blair and the cabinet are being thrown under the bus here.

So's Bush and his administration.

Seems like a yes:

Military action in Iraq might have been necessary at some point. But in March 2003 there was no imminent threat from Saddam Hussein, the strategy of containment could have been adapted and continued for some time, the majority of the Security Council supported continuing UN inspections and monitoring."

[Northern Goblin]

From the report outlines, it looks like they're sparing Blair and just saying he was given poor intelligence and was unable to put influence on America.

So they're saying really that he was incompetent, not that he was complicit.

[caervek]

The party leaders are getting their turn to speak now, and looks like they are getting stuck right in lol:

Far from being Bush's passenger, Blair was his co-pilot in taking this catastrophic decision which has destabilised Iraq, provided the hotbed for Daesh and tarnished Britain's reputation around the word.

Blair was fixated in joining Bush in going to war in Iraq regardless of the evidence, the legality or the serious potential consequences. Daesh [so-called Islamic State] has arisen from the complete absence of any post conflict planning by the government.

[Puupi]

The man wanted to be a socialist Churchill, but failed extraordinarily.

[Slant]

Well it definitely looks like Blair is going to be having some lawsuits coming his way at the very least:

NB: For those not following all this, the report confirms that the UK/USA jumped the gun on invading, it wasn't legal, the reasons were bogus, warnings were not adhered too, intelligence made it clear the reasons were bogus before the invasion, and the resulting terrorist attacks and the rise of ISIS were not only directly caused by the invasion but predicted beforehand.

This is good. I've said it all along, it's a direct violation of international law and this is the logical consequence. Faith in humanity restored (somewhat).

[Puupi]

Pretty sure there was absolutely nothing socialist about him.

................?

[Collegeguy]

Well it definitely looks like Blair is going to be having some lawsuits coming his way at the very least:

Obama was warned that arming syrian rebels could mean the same weapons go to ISIS and prop up terrorist groups. Where is the lawsuits?

[tehealadin]

He didn't outright say that it was illegal, though from the parts I have seen, you could infer that it was illegal. However many of the criticisms have been validated-, there was no need for the action taken, it was taken hastily, troops were under prepared and the potential consequences were ignored. That Blair can walk around a free man is a mockery of justice. Was Saddam a monster? Absolutely. Did the means justify the ends and outcome? Fuck no.

[Cosmic Janitor]

Fine I'm sure all the people hating on "corrupt Clinton" now agree that G.W. Bush and Tony Blair should be tried for war-crimes.

(yeah not really expecting that to happen).

Sadly I can't actually start it, but I'm all for doing it. (So you are wrong) we should finally hold politicians, especially those hereditary ones, accountable for the shit they cause. Making piss poor decisions because of inner party power plays and the like should not be excused.

[Deleted]

The way Blair is going to avoid any consequences for misleading parliament and starting an illegal war will be quite magical

And maybe, just a little bit sexual.

[Northern Goblin]

Thing is, Parliament voted on it, and voted quite significantly in favour for it.

So are we going to try all of them too? The whole thing was a fucking mess, I'll be amazed if anyone is ever prosecuted from it, but the intelligence and way future scenarios are carried out need to done very differently.

[tehealadin]

Saddam did terrible things, however I'm pretty sure things are worse there now for the majority of people.

Indeed, tis why I said that the means didn't justify the ends and outcome. Though it tells a sorry story that the only thing stopping people from killing each other and each others children is a man like Saddam.