Stefan Simanowitz Profile picture
Jan 26, 2023 6 tweets 7 min read Read on X
Exactly 20 years ago, George W Bush told Saudi ambassador Prince Bandar & that he plans to go to war with Iraq

He only told Secretary Powell two days later

On 20/1/03, Bush signed a presidential directive giving Pentagon control over postwar Iraq
#IraqWar #IraqWar20 #Iraq ImageImageImageImage
#OTD 20 years ago the UN announced

“It would appear…Iraq had decided in principle to…bring the disarmament task to completion…Weapons inspectors have examined 106 locations & found no evidence that Iraq revived its nuclear weapons programme”

No WMDs, no justification for war ImageImage
#OTD 20 years ago, in his State of the Union, Bush said “the 16 words”

“The British govt has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa”

It was a lie, based on a forgery

Even the CIA rprtly thought the claims were "highly dubious" ImageImageImageImage
#OTD 20 years ago Rumsfeld said:
“Iraq poses a serious & mounting threat to our country”

Notes of meeting between Bush & Blair two days later make clear Bush intended to invade Iraq even if UN inspectors found no evidence of WMD
FClip from movie, Vice👇)
#OTD 20yrs ago, Bush & Blair had a 2hr meeting at the White House

Bush made clear he intended to invade Iraq even if UN inspectors found no evidence of WMD. & had considered “flying U2 reconnaissance planes…over Iraq, painted in UN colours” to tempt Iraqi forces to fire on them Image
Wolfowitz: They know we’re at war but they don’t understand against who

Rumsfeld: They want a country. It’s simpler. Cleaner

Cheney: Looks like it’s time to take #Iraq.

Bush: I’ve been wanting to take that m*#$%@ Saddam down for a long time
(Vice, 2018)

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with Stefan Simanowitz

Stefan Simanowitz Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @StefSimanowitz

Jun 25
Wow!

Incredible news to wake up to

Julian Assange is free after a plea deal

He was released on bail from Belmarsh prison & boarded a plane which is currently heading to Australia

His release is a testament to those fought for his freedom #JulianAssange

Julian Assange is scheduled to appear in a federal court in Saipan, a US commonwealth in the Pacific, where he’s expected to plead guilty to one charge under the Espionage Act & be sentenced to 5yrs

Given he’s already served this time, he should walk free
The public have a right to know what their govts do in their name

Julian #Assange’s prosecution represented a grave threat to press freedom, undermining the key role of journalists & publishers in scrutinizing govts misdeeds & creating a chilling effect

Read 6 tweets
May 15
1/. Four years, ago this tweet👇broke the #CareHomeScandal

The govt had INSTRUCTED hospitals to send people “who may have #COVID19” to care homes WITHOUT TESTING

They KNEW about asymptomatic transmission in Jan 2020

Many thousands died

This revelation led to other questions…
Image
2/. From the start of the pandemic the govt had given #Palantir, a US spyware company with reported links to #CambridgeAnalytica, access to NHS health data

The NHS = the most trusted brand in the UK

Cambridge Analytica = the least trusted

Disturbing…

3/. Palantir worked on the NHS data store with #FacultyAI - a company with ties to Cummings

In 2020, @amnesty warned that Big Tech firms might use the COVID crisis to hoover up genomic data, obliterating the last frontier of privacy: our biological selves

Read 5 tweets
Mar 9
1/. “It is the greatest mass-killing in recorded history; & it goes on daily, hourly, as regularly as the ticking of your watch”

Arthur Koestler’s 1944 essay expressing frustration at the failure of the world to acknowledge Nazi atrocities resonates today
wethescreamers.com
2/ “There are a few of us…yelling at you in newspapers…Now & then we reach your ear…But it only lasts a minute. You shake yourself like puppies who’ve got their fur wet; then the screen again descends & you walk on, protected by the dream-barrier which stifles all sound”
#Gaza Image
3/ Koestler notes maniacs lose contact with reality so “perhaps it’s we, the screamers, who react in a sound & healthy way to the reality which surrounds us, whereas you are the neurotics who totter about in a screened fantasy world because you lack the faculty to face the facts” Image
Read 8 tweets
Feb 23
“They got me!” Liz Truss tells far-right kingpin, Steve Bannon, before going on to explain that, to have effectively tackled “the deep state” that runs Britain & its institutions, she would have “needed a bigger bazooka”! #LizTruss #BritanniaUnchained
"I was just saying it like it is & that’s what people respect me for"(!)

Liz Truss’ compares her premiership to a one night stand & says she was just “fattening the pig” for slaughter & that she should have gaslit the public like Rishi Sunak is doing (!)
"I faced the most almighty backlash...from the usual suspects in the media” Liz Truss

“Truss's decline is simultaneously tragic & horrifying but the claim that the media conspired against her can't go unchallenged. There are front pages praising her to the rafters” @mrjamesob



Image
Image
Image
Image
Read 4 tweets
Jan 4
1/. In 2020 I started a thread warning that Trump might launch an attack on Iran before the end of his term

It wasn’t the first time there had been a real danger of a US-led, Israeli backed attack (records show Bush had come close in 2007/8)

The risk appears now to be very high
Image
2/. It’s clear that the bomb blasts in Kerman on the 4th anniversary of #Soleimani's assassination by the US, could lead to a quick ratcheting up of dangerous tensions

After Oct 7, the US sent two aircraft carrier groups to the region

Iran just deployed a warship to the Red Sea
Image
3/. Three US soldiers were killed & two dozen injured in an unmanned aerial drone attack on US forces stationed in northeastern #Jordan near the Syrian border, President @JoeBiden said

This could mark a dangerous escalation
arab.news/y8h8h
Image
Read 18 tweets
Nov 6, 2023
Despite previous denials, Michelle Mone finally admits her involvement in failed PPE supplier Medpro

There should be a criminal investigation into possible intentional breach of beneficial ownership disclosure rules

The govt VIP Lane needs investigating

Something about the #MichelleMone interview doesn’t pass the smell test

Why are Mone & her husband - currently under criminal investigation in UK & Spain - being given a prime time slot to tell ‘their side of the story’?

5 questions @bbclaurak should ask

@bbclaurak “I don’t honestly think there’s a case to answer. I can’t see what we’ve done wrong” @MichelleMone

Wow! #MichelleMone & #DougBarrowman on @bbclaurak’s programme, this morning

Read 13 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us!

:(