Saturday 24 October 2015

Tony Blair apologizes for Iraq war and admits the conflict may have given rise to ISIS

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair

Tony Blair, the former British Prime Minister has apologised for mistakes made over the Iraq war and admitted the conflict could have sparked the rise of brutal Islamic State fundamentalists. In an interview with American news network CNN, the former Prime Minister said he was sorry for elements connected to the war.
When asked if the Iraq War was a mistake in an interview with reporter Fareed Zakaria, Mr Blair said: "I apologise for the fact that the intelligence we received was wrong.
"I also apologise for some of the mistakes in planning and, certainly, our mistake in our understanding of what would happen once you removed the regime."
The interview is scheduled to be broadcast on Sunday and in one startling segment, Blair appears to admit the controversial conflict - which led to mass protests on the nation's streets - could be partially responsible for the warped version of Islam that is currently tearing the Middle East apart.
When challenged that the Iraq War was one of the principle causes of the rise of ISIS, Blair said: "I think there are elements of truth in that.
"Of course you can’t say those of us who removed Saddam in 2003 bear no responsibility for the situation in 2015."
Though not apologising for removing Saddam Hussein, Blair does appear to admit he did not realise "what would happen once you removed the regime."
The comments are thought to be the first time Blair has sought any forgiveness over the war in Iraq.
In 2007, he said: "I don’t think we should be apologising at all for what we are doing in Iraq."
During the interview, presenter Zakaria praises Blair for being the only interviewee in the programme who "took responsibility for Iraq" in front of the cameras.




1 comment: