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To: maceng2 who wrote (761)	5/3/2005 4:34:45 AM
From: maceng2	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1417

Blair faces Iraq families' anger news.bbc.co.uk Anthony Wakefield's wife has said she blames Tony Blair for his death The wife of the latest British soldier to be killed in Iraq has blamed Tony Blair for his death. Guardsman Anthony Wakefield was killed by a roadside bomb on Monday. His wife, Ann Toward, said Mr Blair should not have sent him to war. Other relatives of troops killed in Iraq warn they intend to take legal action over the war. Mr Blair on Monday night told ITV he had given up trying to persuade people over the war but defended his honesty. He told the Ask the Leaders programme: "I've had this election campaign where there have been some pretty fearsome attacks on my character and I'm not going to stand here and beg for my own character. "People can make up their minds whether they trust me or not and that's their decision on May 5." You should not have sent the troops over, you should not have done that Ann Toward, Guardsman Wakefield's widow, in a message to Tony Blair Charles Kennedy said no party should try and benefit from Guardsman Wakefield's death. "It would be completely wrong for any competing party politician to try and score any sense of campaign points out of the loss of the life of a British serviceman killed in action. "There are 8,000 service personnel there in Iraq. We must not forget them. "We should be planning now responsibly in line with the expiry of the UN mandate to bring them safely home." Mother's anger Mr Blair defended the decision to go to war in the wake of a new leaked memo indicating he was looking at ways to justify war with Iraq in July 2002 - eight months before the conflict. He said the memo in the Sunday Times had been taken out of context, as shown by the fact he had later gone to the United Nations to secure a new resolution and given Saddam Hussein a "last chance". Earlier, Mr Blair sent his "profound condolences" to Guardsman Wakefield's family. The 24-year-old soldier, who had three children, was the 87th UK troop to who have died in the Iraq conflict. His widow, Ms Toward, told the ITV News Channel her message to Mr Blair was: "You should not have sent the troops over, you should not have done that." If it was not for Mr Blair's actions, "my children would still have their father today and I really do blame him for that", she said. Court action Ms Toward saluted her husband as "a very brave man, he was outgoing, he was funny, he had a sense of humour, he was really fun to be with, he was a great father as well". Relatives of other British troops killed in Iraq will serve notice to Downing Street on Tuesday of their plans to take the government to court. The court action, which is being backed by the Stop The War Coalition, will outline the group's legal case against the war under the European Convention of Human Rights. A coalition spokesman said there were also plans for a private prosecution against the prime minister. "We have been told by senior barristers that we have a very strong legal case," he said. The relatives travelling to Downing Street will include Rose Gentle, the mother of Fusilier Gordon Gentle, who was killed by a roadside bomb in Iraq. Legal argument The government last week published the attorney general's full legal opinion on the war after parts of it were leaked to the media. Ministers insist Lord Goldsmith's advice did not change from the document, dated 7 March 2003 and which contained caveats, and his unequivocal backing of the war a fortnight later. They argue the war was justified on the basis of United Nations resolutions dating back to the 1990 Gulf War. Labour has tried to keep the election campaign away from Iraq to focus on the economy and public services. But the Liberal Democrats continue to stress their opposition to the conflict and the Conservatives say Mr Blair lied about the case against Iraq.