Powell charges ‘will convince those who want to be convinced’

US Secretary of State Colin Powell’s attempt to indict Iraq over weapons of mass destruction and links to the terrorist group al-Qaida will comfort the converted, but may not persuade doubters that Washington has a cast-iron case for war.

Analysts said Mr Powell, marshalling audio tapes and satellite photos in a dramatic presentation to the UN Security Council yesterday, had made damning charges against Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, without providing conclusive proof.

“It will convince those who want to be convinced,” said Ali Ansari, a Middle East specialist at Britain’s Durham University. “It will make the anti-war people uncomfortable. The taped conversations show the Iraqis were hiding something.”