The Hindu : Where are the WMD?

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Apr 24, 2003

Opinion

Opinion - Letters to the Editor

Where are the WMD?

Sir, — The U.S. decided to invade Iraq on the assumption that Baghdad possessed Weapons of Mass Destruction and that terrorist organisations such as the Al-Qaeda would gain control of the WMD and use them against it. Now that the war is over and the U.S. has taken control of Iraq, there is not a single trace of these WMD — chemical, biological or nuclear. It is clear that the very purpose of the invasion has been defeated. Thousands of innocent people were killed in the bombing of Baghdad and Basra. Can President George Bush or Prime Minister Tony Blair undo the damage done by this war, which was basically immoral?

S. Chandran,
Chennai

Sir, — While purporting to be upholding the duties and responsibilities of free and unbiased journalism, BBC and CNN actually carried out a deliberate process of vilification in their coverage of the Iraq war. CNN used the caption, "War in Iraq", for its coverage, while it would have been more appropriate and fair to have said, "Iraq in War" or "War on Iraq". After the fall of Saddam Hussein, the channel changed it to "Iraq: After Saddam", in which looting, civilian unrest and anarchy were more conspicuous by the U.S. presence than absence. Wouldn't it have been more real and fair to have named it "Iraq: under coalition"?

True to the leadership style of its rulers, the BBC played second fiddle to CNN. "Coalition War" (and not "Iraq War" as named by BBC) would have put the war in a proper perspective.

Manthina Ugandhar,
Visakhapatnam, A.P.

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