The main “finding” from the first day of the long-awaited Iraq inquiry appears to be that the Bush administration were discussing toppling Saddam Hussein as late early as 2001. This will come as no surprise to most people who followed developments in Washington through that period.
But it does give me an excuse to dredge up my favourite nugget from The 9/11 Commission report.
Footnote 75, buried on page 576, cites a memo showing that some US defence officials were examining options to bomb Iraq — and even random “terrorists” in South America — within days of the September 11 attacks. Here is the footnote in full.
75. …In a memo that appears to be from Under Secretary of Defense Douglas Feith to Rumsfeld, dated September 20, the author expressed disappointment at the limited options immediately available in Afghanistan and the lack of ground options. The author suggests instead hitting terrorists outside the Middle East in the initial offensive, perhaps deliberately selecting a non-al Qaeda target like Iraq. Since US attacks were expected in Afghanistan, an American attack in South America or Southeast Asia might be a surprise to the terrorists. The memo may have been a draft never sent to Rumsfeld, or may be a draft of points being suggested for Rumsfeld to deliver in a briefing to the President.
Jim Pickard
Kiran Stacey
