4.2 |
Iraq WMD assessments, July to September 2002
in a two-week
period at the time the 9 September Assessment was
being
prepared and
discussed.”135
282.
Sir John
stated that:
•
the source
who had produced “the 45-minute report as well”, was
“an
established
and reliable reporting [source], but reporting from a line of
…
named sub-sources”;
and
•
that source
“was quoting his knowledge” and had been “speaking in very
definite
terms about
their continued possession [of chemical and biological
weapons]”.136
283.
The “45
Minute” report “quoting the sub-sources on the intention to use
[CBW]”
was
withdrawn on 28 September 2004 (see Section 4.3).137
Sir John
said he had known
“in about
May 2004” that there was “a big question mark about that
report”.
284.
In relation to
the production of biological agent, Sir John Scarlett stated that
a
report in
early September:
“… from an
established and reliable source … referred to a … fermentation
system,
which … was
judged to be very likely to be a reference to the same
general
capability
and the same focus on mobile production capabilities, and that
was
referred to
in assessments after that as corroboration for the mobile
reporting.
“So a lot
of weight was placed upon the reporting […] from that
source.”138
285.
Sir John
stated that the reporting on mobile production facilities was
withdrawn
286.
Mr Miller
told the Inquiry:
“… we were
the recipients of the intelligence on the basis described and we
gave
weight to
those descriptions, but we didn’t try to get underneath the surface
of what
had led to
a conclusion particularly about the reliability of any particular
stream.”140
287.
Asked how much
the JIC had known about the sources, Mr Miller
added:
“Generally
not a great deal. From time to time, when there was a particular
source
which the
agencies attached great weight to, there was some briefing given on
why
they were
attaching particular weight to a source. But it was all at a fairly
high level
of
generality, and there was, for the bulk of the reporting, nothing
more than the
descriptors
on the individual reports.”
135
Private
hearing, 5 June 2010, page 13.
136
Private
hearing, 5 June 2010, page 20.
137
Private
hearing, 5 June 2010, page 21.
138
Private
hearing, 5 June 2010, page 18.
139
Private
hearing, 5 June 2010, page 21.
140
Private
hearing, 5 June 2010, page 30.
167