From The Sydney Morning Herald, 11/26/05:
http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/outrage-grows-at-bush-bomb-claims/2005/11/25/1132703377862.html
Outrage grows at Bush bomb claims
AN executive of Al-Jazeera, the Arabic news channel, is seeking an
urgent meeting with the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, over
reports that George Bush discussed bombing the satellite channel's
headquarters in Qatar.
Wadah Khanfar, the station's director-general, is flying to Britain
this weekend after newspapers reported the US President made the
comments during a meeting with Mr Blair at the White House on April 16
last year.
Mr Bush's alleged comments about bombing Al-Jazeera's building in Doha
are reported to be contained in a note of the meeting.
The British Attorney-General, Lord Goldsmith, warned newspapers they
could be charged under the Official Secrets Act if they published
further material from the note.
In the House of Commons on Thursday, a Liberal Democrat MP, David
Heath, said Lord Goldsmith had threatened editors with the Official
Secrets Act to prevent government embarrassment rather than protect
national security.
The Attorney-General's warning was "not on the grounds of national
security but on the grounds of potential embarrassment to the Prime
Minister or to any presidents he happens to have conversations with",
he said.
Geoff Hoon, the leader of the House of Commons, replied saying Lord
Goldsmith had a "legal responsibility".
He added:
"It is done only in certain limited circumstances. But it is an
important power that needs exercising from time to time."
A former defence minister, Peter Kilfoyle, on Thursday tabled a
Commons motion saying MPs were "appalled" by Mr Bush's reported
comments and Mr Blair's apparent failure to restrain him by persuading
him to moderate US tactics in Iraq.
He said any note of the White House meeting should be published.
Ahmed el-Sheik, Al-Jazeera's editor-in-chief, also called on the
British Government to release a memo on the meeting.
"Leaving things vague is terrifying," he said.
"The British Government has to explain - was it a serious talk or was
it a joke?"
The White House meeting, in April last year, took place at a time
British officials and military commanders were appalled by US tactics
in Iraq, particularly the assault on Falluja.
Pictures shown on Al-Jazeera of the attack infuriated US generals.
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A White House official told CNN: "We are not going to dignify
something so outlandish with a response." And a Pentagon official
called the Daily Mirror report "absolutely absurd."
http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/11/24/jazeera.protest/
Well, this should clear things up;
Demand for publication of Bush's 'bomb al-Jazeera' memo
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/11/25/ujaz.xml&sSheet=/portal/2005/11/25/ixportaltop.html
Harry
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