Tony Blair lied about the necessity of launching a war in Iraq – it’s official. On July 6th 2016, the Chilcot Report published a damning indictment of the events that led up to the Iraq war.

Sir John Chilcot scrutinised almost a decade of government policy decisions that were made between 2001 and 2009.

In his report, he found that the UK had chosen to join the Iraq war before all of the peaceful options and interventions had been exhausted.

The report states that 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”.

Furthermore, the Chilcot report also claimed that Blair’s infamous rhetoric about the immediate threat of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) were not justified.

In addition, it found that the circumstances for which it was decided that there was a legal basis for UK military action were “far from satisfactory”.

Blair also underestimated his ability to influence US decisions in Iraq and support for US foreign policy does not need to be unconditional, according to the inquiry.

It has also been revealed that on July 28th 2002, the then Prime Minister Tony Blair assured the USA President George Bush that he would support his decisions regardless of the circumstances.

Relatives of those that were killed in the Iraq war expressed their disdain for Tony Blair at an emotional press conference in which they branded him the world’s worst terrorist. They also threatened to take legal action against him.

Sarah O’Connor, whose brother, Sergeant Bob O’Conner died in the conflict, said that Blair should “look us in the eye” as she described him as a terrorist.

Tony Blair has however denied any wrongdoing and dismissed anti-war protestors as ‘fatuous’ and the actions of “liberal-minded people taking to the streets to defend an illiberal regime” in a memo to George Bush at the time.

He also purportedly told Bush to “act now and explain later” two years before the Iraq war.

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