Aram Roston on “The Extraordinary Life, Adventures and Obsessions of Ahmad Chalabi”

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http://www.democracynow.org/2008/3/26/the_man_who_pushed_america_to

“The Man Who Pushed America to War”–Aram Roston on “The Extraordinary Life, Adventures and Obsessions of Ahmad Chalabi”


As the war in Iraq enters its sixth year, we take a look at The Man Who Pushed America to War. That’s the title of a new book about Ahmed Chalabi, the Iraqi exile who helped drum up pre-war claims that Saddam Hussein was developing weapons of mass destruction and had links to al-Qaeda. We speak with author Aram Roston about Chalabi’s past, his close ties to the US government, his role in the US invasion of Iraq and much more.

Aram Roston, author of the new book, The Man Who Pushed America to War: The Extraordinary Life, Adventures and Obsessions of Ahmad Chalabi. Aram is an investigative journalist with NBC News. He has written for the New York Times Magazine, Mother Jones and The Nation.


AMY GOODMAN: As we continue now on international and national policy, the war in Iraq entering its sixth year, an outbreak of fighting in several cities across Iraq is happening now. At least fifty-five people have died, more than 300 have been wounded, since the Iraqi government launched an offensive against Muqtada al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army in the southern city of Basra. The fighting is unraveling a ceasefire Sadr imposed last summer, and fears are growing the clashes could signal an end to the relative lull in attacks, assassinations, kidnappings and bombings. Meanwhile, it now appears President Bush will keep 140,000 troops in Iraq for the rest of his term.

All this comes just days after the fifth anniversary of the invasion. After half a decade of war with no end in sight, we take a look at The Man Who Pushed America to War. That’s the title of a new book about Ahmed Chalabi. He’s the Iraqi exile who lobbied Congress to support the invasion of Iraq. He provided the Iraqi sources to journalists and congressmen who said Saddam Hussein was developing weapons of mass destruction and had links to al-Qaeda, all of which turned out to be false. Chalabi led the Iraqi exile group the Iraqi National Congress. More recently, he promoted the so-called US troop “surge” to the Iraqi government. Who funded Chalabi’s work? The CIA, then the State Department.

Chalabi has long denied he helped drum up pre-war claims that Saddam Hussein possessed WMDs. This is Chalabi speaking in November 2005 on a visit to New York.

AHMED CHALABI: The fact that I perpetuated a case for war based on weapons of mass destruction is an urban myth which is not rooted in reality, and it continues to have a life of its own, despite the very serious investigations that were conducted by bipartisan bodies of the United States government, such as the Senate Intelligence Committee.

Rest of interview transcript at link~

http://www.democracynow.org/2008/3/26/the_man_who_pushed_america_to