On the war fronts

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On the war fronts

Updated: November 24, 2009 - 9:43 PM

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An inquiry into Britain's role in the Iraq war opened Tuesday with top government advisers testifying that some Bush administration officials were calling for "regime change" -- Saddam Hussein's ouster -- as early as 2001, two years before the U.S.-led invasion.

"We were aware of these drumbeats in Washington, and internally we discussed it. Our policy was to stay away from that," said William Patey, a Foreign Office Mideast specialist at the time.

Critics hope the hearings, convened by a government-appointed panel, will expose alleged deception by the government in the buildup to fighting.

Three Afghan Cabinet officials and 12 former ministers are under investigation for alleged corruption, the attorney general's office said, without naming them. President Hamid Karzai, under pressure from Western governments, pledged in his second inaugural address last week to support the arrests of anyone involved in corruption.

A top official of Iraq's election commission said recent developments had made it "impossible" to hold elections in January as required by Iraq's constitution. The statement from Qassim al-Aboudi came as Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi, a Sunni Arab, threatened a second veto of a parliamentary bill governing the elections after it was amended and passed by Shiite and Kurdish legislators.

Google is documenting the ancient treasures of Iraq's National Museum and will post photographs of them on the Internet early next year, Google chief Eric Schmidt announced in Baghdad. The museum was ransacked in the chaotic aftermath of Saddam Hussein's ouster in April 2003, and only a small number of visitors are allowed in to see the collection. Schmidt, who toured the museum with U.S. Ambassador Christopher Hill, said it was important for the world to see Iraq's rich heritage.

NEWS SERVICES