Mark the calendar: July 6, 2016 is supposed to be the release date for the Chilcot Inquiry Report.
The Iraq Inquiry, also referred to as the Chilcot Inquiry after its chairman, Sir John Chilcot,[1][2] is a British public inquiry into the nation's role in the Iraq War. The inquiry was announced on 15 June 2009 by Prime Minister Gordon Brown, with an initial announcement that proceedings would take place in private, a decision which was subsequently reversed after receiving criticism in the media and the House of Commons.[3][4][5]
The Inquiry was pursued by a committee of Privy Counsellors with broad terms of reference to consider Britain's involvement in Iraq between mid-2001 and July 2009. It covered the run-up to the conflict, the subsequent military action and its aftermath with the purpose to establish the way decisions were made, to determine what happened and to identify lessons to ensure that in a similar situation in future, the British government is equipped to respond in the most effective manner in the best interests of the country.[6] The open sessions of the inquiry commenced on 24 November 2009 and concluded on 2 February 2011.
The report has been the subject of an intense battle which has delayed its release. There are expected to be some damning revelations. Per The Guardian:
Senior figures from Labour and the Scottish National party are considering calls for legal action against Tony Blair if the former prime minister faces severe criticisms from the long-awaited inquiry into the war in Iraq.
A number of MPs led by Alex Salmond are expected to use an ancient law to try to impeach the former prime minister when the Chilcot report comes out on Wednesday.
The law, last used in 1806 when the Tory minister Lord Melville was charged for misappropriating official funds, is seen in Westminster as an alternative form of punishment that could ensure Blair never holds office again.
Prison time for Blair is a possibility, though unlikely. For one, the current British political turmoil over the consequences of the Brexit vote is monopolizing the attention of most of the political establishment. Also, as The Guardian points out:
... MPs have said the attempt will be symbolic and is unlikely to result in imprisonment.
Salmond, the former Scottish first minister, said there “has to be a judicial or political reckoning” for Blair’s role in the Iraq conflict. “He seemed puzzled as to why Jeremy Corbyn thinks he is a war criminal, why people don’t like him,” he told Sky News.
“The reason is 179 British war dead, 150,000 immediate dead from the Iraq conflict, the Middle East in flames, the world faced with an existential crisis on terrorism – these are just some of the reasons perhaps he should understand why people don’t hold him in the highest regard.
“[MPs] believe you cannot have a situation where this country blunders into an illegal war with the appalling consequences and at the end of the day there isn’t a reckoning. There has to be a judicial or political reckoning for that.”
The reckoning for Blair may not be as severe as for others. The Telegraph reports:
Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court will examine the Chilcot report for evidence of abuse and torture by British soldiers but have already ruled out putting Tony Blair on trial for war crimes, The Telegraph can disclose.
The decision has outraged families of troops killed in Iraq who blame Mr Blair for engineering the war.
Sir John Chilcot’s report will finally be published on Wednesday and is expected to strongly criticise Mr Blair’s role in the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.
But in an official statement to the Telegraph, the International Criminal Court (ICC) said its prosecutors would comb through the 2.3 million word report for evidence of war crimes committed by British troops but that decision to go to war remained outside its remit.
The decision to invade, the war, and the following occupation is widely seen as having destabilized Iraq and the region, and given rise to the Islamic State. The consequences continue.
The British are belatedly attempting to exercise some accountability. The United States has yet to do so in any meaningful way, despite clear evidence of intelligence failures and lies, a calculated campaign to make a case for war. Add in war crimes and worse, massive corruption, and the staggering overall costs of the war… (Definitely look at the last link.)
They say those who refuse to learn from history are doomed to repeat it. If so, those who cover it up and rewrite it are actively seeking to do so. Will the Chilcot Inquiry have any impact in America? Will anyone from the Bush administration face any consequences for their actions? Will the media pay any attention to the report? Will it have any effect on the campaign for the White House?
We’ll begin to see on Wednesday.