Kelly's widow due to give evidence

THE widow of weapons expert David Kelly will today break her public silence over the death of her husband when she gives evidence to the Hutton Inquiry.

The appearance of Janice Kelly, 58, may have a crucial bearing on the outcome of the investigation into her husband's apparent suicide.

A short statement issued by the family after his body was discovered in woodlands close to their home in Oxfordshire, England, said that his life had been made "intolerable".

Mrs Kelly with her daughter Rachel and other family and friends who are also giving evidence is likely to be asked about the pressures he was under during his final days.

Dr Kelly's death followed the disclosure that he was the source of a BBC report claiming the British government "sexed up" its dossier on Iraqi weapons to strengthen the case for war.

The story sparked a furious dispute between the government and the BBC and led to Dr Kelly being summoned before the Commons foreign affairs committee for a public grilling.

A spokesman for the inquiry confirmed that Mrs Kelly she would be coming to the Royal Courts of Justice in London to give her evidence.

Officials were, however, still considering her request to give evidence by video-link from within the building so she could avoid the ordeal of having to appear personally in the courtroom.

In another development, it was reported that an unpublished article written by Dr Kelly, in which he backed the case for war against Iraq, was being submitted to the inquiry.

According to The Observer newspaper, he argued in the paper written before the war that while the threat from Iraq was "modest", military action was the only way to conclusively disarm Saddam Hussein.

Earlier, the pressure on the government over the dossier increased when the new chief UN weapons inspector, Dimitris Perricos, said the controversial claim that some weapons could be deployed in 45 minutes was wrong.

"There is no doubt that the phrase of 'within 45 minutes' that was included in the British report did not correspond to reality," he said in an interview with a Greek newspaper.

He added: "No one, of course, should go to war for a [weapons] programme if they do not know if the weapons have been created. From the inspections, no evidence was found that would justify a war."

British foreign secretary Jack Straw has admitted that the final outcome of the hunt by coalition forces for Saddam's banned arsenal was uncertain.