London: The chair of Britain’s inquiry into the Iraq war has defended the time spent on the investigation amid heated criticism from families of those killed in the war.
John Chilcot responded Wednesday to increasing pressure from bereaved families to release the findings, saying that the report must be fair.
The inquiry into decisions and mistakes in Britain’s planning and execution of the war began in 2009.
Chilcot has not yet given a timetable for the conclusion of the report, which has been held up partly by a process giving those criticized a chance to respond.
He says that while he understands relatives’ anguish, “it is critically important that the report should be fair to all who participated in the conflict and to those who bore the responsibility of taking decisions.