We should never have invaded Iraq. As a nation we cannot afford foreign escapades. There was no moral urgency to invade and the consequences have been predictably calamitous – we have suffer almighty blowback, a concept I discuss in my weekend video HERE.
Tony Blair prompted that invasion. He is endeavouring to suppress papers which will, show that it was almost certainly illegal to invade.
Now the war criminal (someone who starts an illegal war is a war criminal) wants us to invade to stop the ISIS Islamofascists from running riot. I am in no doubt that ISIS are truly awful people. Some of their actions are also war crimes.
But Blair must accept that he has created ISIS. Saddam Hussein was a bad man but in his Iraq there were no terrorists attacking the West (contrary to what Blair & Bush told us). In overthrowing a tyrant we created anarchy. But we also – as was so utterly predictable – created bitter resentment of everything that the West stands for. So we created the conditions for ISIS to flourish in Iraq
And then we compounded our folly by meddling in Syria. President Assad is like his predecessor (his old man) a nasty piece of work who will burn in hell. But we have no right to meddle in Syria but Western liberals again thought they could impose regime change to a nice moderate opposition. Like it has worked so well in Iran (1953), Libya, Egypt, Afghanistan, etc. has it not guys? It is quite clear that the West funded, trained and armed rebel fighters in Syria including, of course, ISIS.
So thanks to the West we have created the conditions for ISIS and then funded, armed and trained them. Just, of course, as we armed, funded and trained Bin Laden at the start of his career as an Islamofascist butcher.
Intervening now to stop ISIS might create a temporary military win. We all know that US and UK warplanes can bomb these folks back to the Stone Age. But that will foster more resentment and anger and there will be blowback.
I offer a different solution. Firstly we withdraw all Western personnel from Iraq at once. Let the folk there kill each other and sort it out themselves. But we should make it clear that anyone committing war crimes will be held to account by the World Community.
However we cannot lecture the Islamic world on War Crimes if we are seen to somehow operate on a different standard. As such all papers relating to our invasion of Iraq should be both published so tat the whole world can see and then handed to the International War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague. If it is shown that Tony Blair started an illegal war he must be tried and – if guilty – punished like any other war criminal.
Only by holding our own leaders up to the highest standards can we explain to folks in Iraq that if they commit crimes they will face a Justice system that treats all equally.
Only then can the West apologise for our past interventions and hope to reach an accord with radical Islam. Or at least give folks who may be enticed by radical Islam, less of a reason for hating the West.
As such my message to Tony Blair is that if he want a real solution in Iraq he can take the first step by ordering the release of ALL paper relating to the invasion of that country by the West.