Australian Prime Minister John Howard faced sharp criticism Saturday after reports surfaced that a senior weapons scientist had urged him, days before committing troops to Iraq, that no legitimate grounds existed for joining the invasion. Bob Mathews, a 35-year veteran of the Defence Science and Technology Organisation, also cautioned that backing the war would expose Australia to greater terrorist risk.
Mathews reportedly wrote to Howard as a private citizen after superiors blocked him from voicing his concerns through official channels. Opposition leader Mark Latham seized on the disclosure, arguing it showed Howard had disregarded sound expert counsel. The controversy landed during a bruising federal election campaign ahead of the 9 October vote, with Iraq policy a central battleground between Howard and Labor, which had pledged to withdraw Australian forces by year's end.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this AFP wire report, first published in September 2004, in its own words.