The Report
of the Iraq Inquiry
167.
On 19 August,
a bomb exploded outside the UN headquarters at the Canal
Hotel
in Baghdad,
killing 22 UN staff and visitors, including Mr Sérgio Vieira
de Mello, the
UN Secretary‑General’s
Special Representative for Iraq (see Section 9.2).109
One
member of
DFID staff was slightly injured.110
168.
Later the same
day, Mr Benn held a meeting with officials to discuss
next
steps and
review the status of DFID staff in Iraq.111
Dr Nicola
Brewer, DFID Director
General
Regional Programmes, stated that it would be “unfortunate if DFID
precipitated
a
withdrawal of staff from Iraq”. The department should say publicly
that it would
not be “intimidated”
by terrorism, but any member of staff who wanted to
leave
should be allowed
to do so. Staff employed on contracts would need advice. If
anyone
did want to
leave, it would need to be co‑ordinated across Whitehall and not
perceived
as an
evacuation.
169.
On the night
of 19 August, the British Office Baghdad was evacuated to the
CPA
secure zone
after officials received a warning of a possible
attack.112
170.
A second
attack on the UN took place on 22 September.113
171.
Security also
deteriorated in the South, with fuel and electricity riots taking
place
in Basra
during August (see Section 9.2).114
172.
In his memoir,
Sir Hilary Synnott wrote that a “shortage of space and squalid
living
conditions
were affecting operations”, but, most importantly:
“… our
combined offices and sleeping quarters were clearly unsafe.
Although, in
those early
days, there were no instances of suicide bombs, we were still
vulnerable
to car
bombs, rocket‑propelled grenades, mortars, small‑arms fire through
our
windows,
siege and sapping. The building adjoined town houses and was
flanked
by roads on
three sides, one of which was next to a canal. The only exit
towards a
military
safe‑haven if we were attacked was over a single bridge, which
could easily
be blocked
by any assailants. We had to move.
…
“I formally
called for separate and independent security reviews by the CPA
in
Baghdad and
by the FCO in London, knowing that they could only agree on
the
need for us
to move.” 115
109
Report of
the Independent Panel on the Safety and Security of UN Personnel in
Iraq, 20 October 2003.
110
Minutes, 28
August 2003, Ad Hoc Group on Iraq Rehabilitation
meeting.
111 Minute
Assistant Private Secretary [DFID] to Austin, 19 August 2003,
‘Iraq: Meeting following the attack
on the UN
office in Baghdad’.
112
Telegram
121 Baghdad to FCO London, 19 August 2003, ‘Evacuation of Staff of
British Office’.
113
Report of
the Independent Panel on the Safety and Security of UN Personnel in
Iraq, 20 October 2003.
114
Public
hearing Synnott, Lamb, Stewart, 9 December 2009, pages 19 and
57.
115
Synnott
H. Bad Days in
Basra: My Turbulent Time as Britain’s Man in Southern
Iraq. I B
Tauris & Co
Ltd.,
2008.
272