John Chilcot says UK invasion of Iraq was not legal

John Chilcot the chairman of  British inquiry into the country's role in the Iraq War, stated in the report that was finally realeased today that Britain joined the invasion of Iraq "before the peaceful options had been exhausted," and that preparations for the aftermath were "wholly inadequate."

UK policy was based on "flawed intelligence and assessments," he claimed. "They were not challenged and they should have been."

Hindsight was not necessary to identify the risks of what would happen to the country post-invasion, he said: "The risks... were each explicitly identified before the invasion."

The legal basis for the war was "far from satisfactory," he said.

"The people of Iraq have suffered greatly," he concluded.

Blair's decision to invade Iraq was influenced by his interest in protecting the UK's relationship with the United States, he said.

That relationship "does not require unconditional support where our interests and judgments differ," said Chilcot.