Baghdad had arms programme.

US president George W Bush again yesterday insisted Baghdad had a programme to manufacture weapons of mass destruction, seeking to rebut critics who say his administration’s credibility is at stake in the search for illicit arms.

However, the White House said it would be “appropriate” for Congress to review the intelligence that led up to the war.

Weeks of searches in Iraq by military experts have not validated the administration’s portrayal of Iraq’s cache of weapons.