Iraq Defector Admits To Lying About WMDs In Iraq That Led To The U.S. Invasion In 2003

Curveball's lies were used by the former US secretary of state Colin Powell to argue the case for the Iraq war. Photograph: David Levene for the Guardian

Defector Admits To WMD Lies That Triggered Iraq War -- The Guardian

• Man codenamed Curveball 'invented' tales of bioweapons
• Iraqi told lies to try to bring down Saddam Hussein regime
• Fabrications used by US as justification for invasion

The defector who convinced the White House that Iraq had a secret biological weapons programme has admitted for the first time that he lied about his story, then watched in shock as it was used to justify the war.

Rafid Ahmed Alwan al-Janabi, codenamed Curveball by German and American intelligence officials who dealt with his claims, has told the Guardian that he fabricated tales of mobile bioweapons trucks and clandestine factories in an attempt to bring down the Saddam Hussein regime, from which he had fled in 1995.

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More News On Faulty Intelligence Leading To The Iraq War

Curveball: How US was duped by Iraqi fantasist looking to topple Saddam -- The Guardian

Curveball's lies – and the consequences -- The Guardian
Curveball and the manufacture of a lie -- The Guardian

Defector admits 'fabricating' Iraq WMD intel -- AFP
Iraqi Says He Made Up Tale of Biological Weapons Before War -- New York Times
'Curveball': I lied about WMD to hasten Iraq war -- MSNBC
Iraqi Defector 'Curveball' Admits WMD Lies, Is Proud of Tricking U.S. -- ABC News
Iraqi defector responsible for prompting Bush to invade Iraq admits he made up WMD claims -- New York Daily News
"Curveball" Confesses to Lying on Iraqi WMD -- Global Security Newswire
Defector 'Curveball' admits he lied about Iraqi WMD -- USA Today
Defector who told the West about Saddam's weapons of mass destruction admits he lied -- The Daily Mail