While maintaining that removing Saddam Hussein was the right choice, Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair has also admitted that the invasion of Iraq is partly responsible for the rise of ISIS.
“Of course you can’t say those of us who removed Saddam in 2003 bear no responsibility for the situation in 2015,” Blair told CNN as part of a one-hour special, “Long Road to Hell: America in Iraq” that will air Monday night.
CBS News reports:
Blair’s decision to take Britain into the Iraq war – based on what turned out to be false claims about Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction – remains hugely divisive and contributed to his Labour Party’s loss of power in 2010.
Blair insisted that removing Saddam was the right hing to do, but apologized as he has before, for failures in post-war planning.
“I apologize for the fact that the intelligence we received was wrong,” said Blair. “I also apologize for some of the mistakes in planning and, certainly, our mistake in our understanding of what would happen once you removed the regime.”
For more on this, read the article from CBS News titled: “Tony Blair admits ‘mistakes’ in Iraq war, rise of ISIS.“
