Media War
False Iraq War intelligence fed to journalists
The defection of Iraqi engineer Adnan al Haideri in 2001 was a massive coup for the White House. "He was probably the single most significant defector who came out of Iraq," states an INC spokesman. Al Haideri claimed to have been hired by Saddam Hussein to build facilities for testing WMD. His story was widely circulated and used to justify the war. Unfortunately, it now appears that his remarkable testimony was a lie. Not one of the hundreds of bunkers detailed by him has been found. "Al Haideri's evidence is a perfect example of the kind of garbage that was disseminated by Ahmed Chalabi," states former weapons inspector Scott Ritter. New information has also emerged about the way Al Haideri's story was leaked to the media. "They misled us," states Ritter "Thousands of innocent Iraqis perished in a war that didn't need to be fought."
Produced by SBS Australia.
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