The Report
of the Iraq Inquiry
189.
Ambassador
Bremer told Mr Blair that in his view there were four security
threats:
•
former
Ba’athists;
•
international
terrorists (Al Qaida and Ansar al-Islam);
•
civil
criminals (whose activities contributed to the sense of insecurity
for the
general
public); and
•
Iranian
agents, particularly in the South and West.
190.
The AHMGIR met
after the video conference.75
191.
The Annotated
Agenda for the meeting, written by Cabinet Office
officials,
described
the security situation and observed that it was “constraining the
reconstruction
work of the
CPA, the UN and other international actors”.76
As a result
of security
concerns,
UK CPA secondees were “operating a night-time curfew”.
192.
The Annotated
Agenda reported growing attacks on US forces, acts of
economic
sabotage
and intimidation of Iraqis working with the CPA, all of which were
beginning
to have an
effect on reconstruction. Tensions in the UK Area of
Responsibility, however,
had not
worsened.
193.
Cabinet Office
officials described action being taken by the UK to
improve
security,
including:
•
training US
soldiers in “urban peace support operations”;
•
increasing
police numbers and “standing up local guard forces”;
and
•
Security
Sector Reform, which was “a long term process”.
194.
Cabinet Office
officials observed that “real
improvements will depend in part on
wider progress
on political reform and reconstruction”.
195.
In southern
Iraq, the Annotated Agenda recorded that the UK was about to
assume
command of
Multi-National Division South-East (MND(SE)), expanding by two
the
number of
provinces over which it had command. Capacity in CPA(South) was
being
bolstered,
and staffing numbers had reached 60, although “operational funding
has still
to
arrive”.
196.
The Annotated
Agenda explained that the Political Council had been
renamed
the
Governing Council (GC),77
and was
expected to convene “by the second half of
July”.
Members would “nominate themselves to the CPA, on the basis of a
consensus
emerging
from the CPA-led political consultations”. It was expected that
Mr Vieira de
Mello would
endorse the GC when he reported to the UN Security Council in
mid-July.
75
Minutes, 3
July 2003, Ad Hoc Group on Iraq Rehabilitation
meeting.
76 Annotated
Agenda, 3 July 2003, Ad Hoc Group on Iraq Rehabilitation
meeting.
77
The
Governing Council (GC) is sometimes referred to as the Iraq
Governing Council (IGC). The two
titles
refer to the same body. The Inquiry has chosen to refer to the GC,
for consistency, except where
quoting
others who have chosen IGC.
236