Dutch Iraq war inquiry finds war was illegal.
Dan Jones | 13.01.2010 11:27
War Criminals
The invasion of Iraq in 2003 was a violation of international law, an independent inquiry in the Netherlands has found.
In a damning series of findings on the decision of the Dutch government to support Tony Blair and George Bush in the strategy of regime change in Iraq, the inquiry found the action had "no basis in international law".
The 551-page report, published today and chaired by former Dutch supreme court judge Willibrord Davids, said UN resolutions in the 1990s prior to the outbreak of war gave no authority to the invasion. "The Dutch government lent its political support to a war whose purpose was not consistent with Dutch government policy. The military action had no sound mandate in international law," it said.
The secret letter from Tony Blair to Jan Peter Balkenende, the Dutch prime minister, asking for the support was further evidence of Blair’s criminal intent.
An arrest warrant for Blair, charging him with genocide in Iraq, can now be issued and enforced anywhere in Europe.
In a damning series of findings on the decision of the Dutch government to support Tony Blair and George Bush in the strategy of regime change in Iraq, the inquiry found the action had "no basis in international law".
The 551-page report, published today and chaired by former Dutch supreme court judge Willibrord Davids, said UN resolutions in the 1990s prior to the outbreak of war gave no authority to the invasion. "The Dutch government lent its political support to a war whose purpose was not consistent with Dutch government policy. The military action had no sound mandate in international law," it said.
The secret letter from Tony Blair to Jan Peter Balkenende, the Dutch prime minister, asking for the support was further evidence of Blair’s criminal intent.
An arrest warrant for Blair, charging him with genocide in Iraq, can now be issued and enforced anywhere in Europe.
Dan Jones