Britain's information commissioner on Tuesday ordered the government to release minutes documenting the discussions former Prime Minister Tony Blair had with his Cabinet in the days before the invasion of Iraq.
Information commissioner Richard Thomas ruled the government should release the minutes of two meetings held in the days leading up to the March 2003 invasion.
The minutes document Blair's discussions with ministers on the advice from then Attorney General Lord Goldsmith, the government's chief legal adviser, about the war's legality.
Thomas said he made the decision in response to a request made under the Freedom of Information Act.
"The gravity and controversial nature of the subject matter" made it in the public interest to release the documents, Thomas' office said in a statement.
He rejected the Cabinet Office's arguments that the documents shouldn't be published because they revealed how the government formed policy and ministerial communications.
The commissioner said the documents will allow the public to fully understand the Cabinet's decisions to enter the unpopular war in Iraq.
Thomas said, however, he accepted the Cabinet's argument that specific references in the minutes could hurt international relations if released. These references would not be published.
The Cabinet Office said it was considering the commissioner's ruling. The Government has five weeks to lodge an appeal to the Information Tribunal against the ruling.
In the meetings, the Cabinet discussed the advice Goldsmith gave to Blair as Britain decided whether to join the U.S.-led invasion. Goldsmith raised doubts about the legality of the war in a 13-page memorandum dated March 7, 2003.
The legal adviser told Blair it would be safer to go to war with a second U.N. Security Council resolution specifically authorizing military action. He also warned that British troops taking part in conflict could be open to legal action.
But in a final, single-page statement discussed at a second meeting 10 days later, Goldsmith gave an unequivocal view that military action was justified under existing United Nations resolutions.
It led to accusations from anti-war campaigners and opposition legislators that Goldsmith had come under political pressure - a charge both he and Blair denied.
Blair blocked the release of Goldsmith's advice to the public until 2006, when they were published under freedom of information laws. The meeting minutes will show how Cabinet responded to that advice.
By D'arcy Doran, The Associated Press
