Iraqi officer ‘source of dossier 45 minute claim’

AN Iraqi officer said he was the source of the controversial claim in the Government’s Iraq dossier that some weapons of mass destruction could be deployed within 45 minutes, it was reported yesterday.

The officer, identified only as Lieutenant Colonel al-Dabbagh, said he had provided several reports to British intelligence on Saddam Hussein's WMD plans from early 2002.

He said these included details of how frontline units including an air defence unit which he commanded in the western desert had been supplied with cases of WMD warheads towards the end of last year.