After 13 years, Chilcot report to deliver final verdict on British role in Iraq War

The long-awaited report will examine Britain's role in the Iraq WarThe politicians who led the country to war 13 years ago are braced for fallout


John Chilcot, chairman of a British inquiry into the country's role in the Iraq War, said at the report's launch that Britain joined the invasion of Iraq "before the peaceful options had been exhausted," and that preparations for the aftermath were "wholly inadequate."

UK policy was based on "flawed intelligence and assessments," he said. "They were not challenged and they should have been."

Hindsight was not necessary to identify the risks of what would happen to the country post-invasion, he said: "The risks... were each explicitly identified before the invasion."

Furthermore, the legal basis for the war was "far from satisfactory," he said.

"The people of Iraq have suffered greatly," he said.