Mohamed ElBaradei: ’The Iraq war was about regime change, not WMDs’ • FRANCE 24 English

Mohamed ElBaradei was director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) from 1997 until 2009. In an interview with FRANCE 24, he reflected on the US-led invasion of Iraq 20 years ago this week, which he opposed. “If I now look in hindsight, it was not really about weapons of mass destruction. It was about regime change,“ he said. ElBaradei added: “They (the US) thought the best pretext was to say that Saddam Hussein was linked to al Qaeda and had WMDs (...) They didn’t really have any evidence. It was all about belief. And they started a slew of deception and misinformation.“ 🔔 Subscribe to France 24 now: 🔴 LIVE - Watch FRANCE 24 English 24/7 here: 🌍 Read the latest International News and Top Stories: Like us on Facebook: Follow us on Twitter: Discover the news in pictures on Instagram: