Bush Forged Evidence for War: Book

The Bush administration forged a letter linking Saddam Hussein to the 9/11 attacks, author Ron Suskind alleges in his new book. In December 2003, a letter surfaced from Saddam’s intelligence chief, describing a meeting between Saddam and one 9/11 hijacker. The letter was actually drafted by the White House, Suskind’s sources say. The intelligence chief, then in CIA custody, was then paid $5 million to handwrite and backdate it, he claims.

The letter also claimed that Iraq was importing nuclear material; neither claim proved true. Suskind says the CIA planted the letter in Baghdad and ensured that it was leaked to the media. Then-CIA director George Tenet last night called the allegations “ridiculous,” because the CIA “resisted efforts on the part of some in the administration to paint a picture of Iraqi-al-Qaeda connections that went beyond the evidence.” (More Iraq stories.)