Iraq dossier 'was meant to make case for war'

Military intelligence chiefs were ordered to "make a case for war" on Saddam Hussein in a dossier about Iraq's weapons, according to documents released today.

The claim to the Iraq Inquiry flatly contradicts evidence given by Tony Blair's former communications director Alastair Campbell.

Last year Mr Campbell dismissed suggestions he sought to "beef up" the September 2002 dossier on Saddam's supposed weapons of mass destruction, saying: "It was not the case for war, it was the case why the Prime Minister had become more concerned." But Major General Michael Laurie, who was the Ministry of Defence's director general of intelligence collection from 2002 to 2003, wrote to Sir John Chilcot's inquiry within days of Mr Campbell's appearance to challenge the statement. "Alistair Campbell said to the inquiry that the purpose of the dossier was not 'to make a case for war'," Maj Gen Laurie said.

"I had no doubt at that time this was exactly its purpose and these very words were used." An earlier dossier drafted in February and March was "rejected because it did not make a strong enough case", he said, adding: "From then until September we were under pressure to find intelligence that could reinforce the case."

The claims will renew allegations that the dossier was "sexed up" by Downing Street officials to justify the March 2003 invasion of Iraq that overthrew Saddam.

Maj Gen Laurie said "every fact was managed to make it as strong as possible" with the final dossier "reaching beyond the conclusions intelligence assessments would normally draw from such facts".

The claims emerged in new documents published by the Iraq Inquiry today. Sir John said his final report would be presented after Parliament's summer recess - suggesting publication in late autumn or early winter.