Tony Blair has questions to answer over “illegal war” in Iraq says Jeremy Corbyn

Tony Blair needs to answer questions over the “illegal war” in Iraq, Jeremy Corbyn has said.

The leadership contender was asked last night on Newsnight whether the former Prime Minister should stand trial on charges of war crimes, if it looked like he broke international law over the illegal 2003 invasion of Iraq. He responded:  “If he has committed a war crime, yes. Everybody who has committed a war crime should be.”

The MP Islington North who was staunchly opposed to the war and who is National Chair of Stop the War Coalition said: “It was an illegal war. I am confident about that. Indeed Kofi Annan confirmed it was an illegal war and therefore [Tony Blair] has to explain to that. Is he going to be tried for it? I don’t know. Could he be tried for it? Possibly.”

Annan was UN general secretary at the time of the invasion of Iraq, he said it was an illegal act that contravened the UN charter.

The Chilcot Inquiry, which is looking into Britain’s role in the Iraq War, has yet to be published after repeated delays. Corbyn said that once it sees the light of day he believes Blair will have to explain what was said between himself and then US President George Bush prior to the Iraq invasion.

He said: “The Chilcot report is going to come out sometime. I hope it comes out soon. I think there are some decisions Tony Blair has got to confess or tell us what actually happened. What happened in Crawford, Texas, in 2002 in his private meetings with George Bush. Why has the Chilcot report still not come out because – apparently there is still debate about the release of information on one side or the other of the Atlantic. At that point Tony Blair and the others that have made the decisions are then going to have to deal with the consequences of it.”

Corbyn also explained his opposition to air strikes in Iraq and Syria against Islamic State (Isis):

“I would want to isolate Isis. I don’t think going on a bombing campaign in Syria is going to bring about their defeat. I think it would make them stronger…I am not a supporter of military intervention. I am a supporter of isolating Isis and bringing about a coalition of the region against them.”

You can watch the full interview here: