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White House ignored CIA warning of post-war chaos in Iraq: report | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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WASHINGTON (AFP) – Former CIA intelligence officers have concluded that the White House ignored a CIA assessment warning of major chaos in Iraq after the removal of Saddam Hussein, The New York Times said.

The July 2004 review said the administration of President George W. Bush &#34apparently paid little or no attention&#34 to the prewar Central Intelligence Agency assessment, the daily said.

While the review panel acknowledged the CIA”s mistaken prewar assessments of Iraq”s weapons program, it said &#34the analysis was right&#34 on cultural and political issues related to postwar Iraq.

The review, led by Richard Kerr, a former deputy director of central intelligence, was disputed by White House spokesman Frederick Jones, who told the daily: &#34we did plan adequately for the postwar period.&#34

While Kerr”s review omitted details of the CIA”s analysis on Iraq, it said it &#34accurately addressed such topics as how the war would develop and how Iraqi forces would or would not fight,&#34 according to the newspaper.

It also praised the CIA”s analysis that there were no significant links between Iraq and Al-Qaeda, and said the agency had accurately forecast &#34the impact of the war on oil markets&#34 and &#34the reactions of the ethnic and tribal factions in Iraq.&#34