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Blair sets out case for military action
LONDON, England (CNN) -- British Prime Minister Tony Blair says there will be "horrendous consequences" if no action is taken over Iraq, but insists there is "no rush to war." Blair, speaking at a news conference on Tuesday, said opponents of war needed to understand that Iraqis would continue to suffer if no military action was taken. "There are tens of thousands of political prisoners being held in Iraq and 150,000 have been murdered or disappeared in the last 15 years," he said. He urged the anti-war protesters that took to the streets on Saturday to listen to the testimony of Iraqi exiles about the horror of Saddam's regime and their wish for him to be removed from power. Blair said regime change was not government policy, and that the argument for removing Saddam rested on the dangers of his weapons arsenals. "The reason for doing so is not because the nature of the regime can in itself provide justification for war, but it can at least show that if we do have to take military action, we do so in the sure knowledge that we are removing one of the most barbarous and detestable regimes in modern political history," he said. After the press conference Blair published a letter written to him by a group called Iraqi Exiles in the UK that said: "We are praying that you will stick to your resolve to liberate our country from a dictatorial tyranny which over the past 30 years has caused the deaths of nearly two million men, women, sons and daughters. "We have suffered enough. The anti-war coalition ignores the terror we have lived under for so long, offers no alternative to our nightmare, and can only be construed as supporting Saddam Hussein and helping to maintain his regime indefinitely." Blair reiterated that Saddam Hussein could avoid war if he complied with the U.N. security resolution. "It is plain that Saddam Hussein remains in material breach of the demands made on him by the United Nations," Blair said. "The credibility of the U.N. would be at stake if it failed to enforce the requirement on Iraq to disarm." "There is no rush to war. We waited 12 years and then went through the United Nations. It is now three months since we gave Saddam what we called a 'final opportunity.' "There is a further report on February 28 but the truth is that without full co-operation by Saddam, the inspectors are never going to be able to search out the weapons." Some 360 tons of chemical warfare agents, including 1.5 tons of VX and growth media for the production of three times as many anthrax spores as had previously been destroyed by inspectors were still unaccounted for, as were thousands of missiles for delivery of chemical and biological weapons, Blair said. And he stressed the dangers of these weapons falling into terrorist hands. "We live today in a world beset by international terrorism, whose groups are desperate to acquire ever more dangerous weapons. They are already using chemical and biological poisons," he said. "The stance the world takes now against Saddam is not just vital in its own right, it is a huge test of our seriousness in dealing with the twin threats of weapons of mass destruction and terrorism." Blair also defended the close relationship between his government and that of U.S. President George W. Bush, saying: "Some of the rhetoric that I hear used about America is actually more savage than some of the rhetoric used about Saddam Hussein and the Iraqi regime. "Let's get a sense of perspective ... America is an ally of Britain for very good reasons. I am proud of that alliance. "People who want to pull Europe and America apart are playing the most dangerous game of international politics I know." Observers say Blair faces an uphill battle to convince his party, as well as the British public, that a war in Iraq -- even with a second U.N. resolution -- is necessary. According to the Guardian/ICM poll published on Tuesday, Blair's personal rating has plunged to minus 20. For the first time the polls show a clear majority -- 52 percent -- opposing war with Iraq. And support for the war was at its lowest yet, 29 percent. The poll found that 29 percent said the weapons inspectors should be give only a few more weeks, a further 49 percent said they should be given "months or longer," and 12 percent said they should be given no more time. Nine percent did not know. ICM interviewed a random sample of 1,003 adults by telephone between February 14 and 16. Interviews were conducted across the country and the results have been weighted to the profile of all adults.
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