Kofi Annan lost his voice, looked vacant at meetings and even sought medical help after the 2003 invasion of Iraq, according to a new biography by his former spokesman.

In a scathing final report documenting massive corruption in the UN oil-for-food programme, investigators accused more than 2,200 companies and prominent politicians of colluding with Saddam Hussein’s regime.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan fired staff member Joseph Stephanides for wrongdoing in the oil-for-food scandal, a UN spokesman said today – the first dismissal stemming from alleged corruption in the multibillion-dollar programme.