Body 'matches' Iraq expert...

Body 'matches' Iraq expert

Police searching for the weapons expert suggested as the possible source for a BBC story on Iraq say the body they have found matches Dr David Kelly's appearance.

The government says an independent judicial inquiry will be held into the circumstances of his death if the body is confirmed to be that of Dr Kelly.

The body was found at 0920 BST by a member of the police team searching for Dr Kelly in a wooded area at Harrowdown Hill, near Faringdon, Oxfordshire.

Government adviser Dr Kelly, 59, has denied being the source of a BBC story on claims that a dossier on Iraq was "sexed up".

He left his home in Southmoor, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, at about 1500 BST on Thursday and his family reported him missing at 2345 BST the same day.

The body was found lying on the ground, around five miles from Dr Kelly's home, a police spokeswoman said.


Acting superintendent Dave Purnell said formal identification would take place on Saturday, said Supt Purnell, and the case was being treated as an "unexplained death".

"We will be awaiting the results of the post mortem and also waiting while the forensic examination continues at the scene at Harrowdown Hill," he added.

Attention

The government announcement of an inquiry if the body is Dr Kelly's came from the prime minister's plane as he flew for a visit to Tokyo.

Mr Blair's spokesman said: "The prime minister is obviously very distressed for the family.

"If it is Dr Kelly's body, the Ministry of Defence will hold an independent judicial inquiry into the circumstances leading up to his death."

Robert Jackson, the Conservative MP in whose constituency Dr Kelly lived, said the "responsibility of the BBC should not go unmentioned" in the case.

"The pressure was significantly increased by the fact the BBC refused to make it clear he was not the source," he said.

A BBC spokesman said: "We are shocked and saddened to hear what has happened and we extend our deepest sympathies to Dr Kelly's family and friends.

"Whilst Dr Kelly's family await the formal identification, it would not be appropriate for us to make any further statement."

Earlier this week, Dr Kelly denied being the BBC's main source for the story claiming Downing Street had "sexed up" the dossier about Iraqi weapons of mass destruction.

MPs on the Commons foreign affairs committee, which questioned Dr Kelly earlier this week, reacted with shock and disbelief at news of his disappearance.

Huge media attention has been on Dr Kelly since the Ministry of Defence said he had come forward to admit meeting Andrew Gilligan, the BBC correspondent behind the controversial Iraq story.

Mr Gilligan said a source had told him that the dossier on Iraq had been "transformed" by Downing Street.

The BBC correspondent has refused to name his source, but the MoD said Dr Kelly had come forward to say it may have been him.

Sensitive

Government ministers have said they believe he was the source for Mr Gilligan's story.

Supt Purnell said a police family liaison officer is with Dr Kelly's family.

Ann Lewis, a neighbour of Dr Kelly, told BBC News Online she was "devastated" for his family, especially his children.

MPs stunned by Kelly disappearance
She said: "He was a quiet man. He was a man who showed great care and concern for others."

Craig Foster, 36, landlord of the Blue Boar public house in nearby Longworth, said Dr Kelly was "a very well liked gentleman".


Police say Dr Kelly is an avid walker and has good local knowledge of the many footpaths surrounding his home.

A Ministry of Defence spokeswoman said: "We are aware that Dr David Kelly has gone missing and we are obviously concerned."

The ministry said Dr Kelly had at no point been threatened with suspension or dismissal for speaking to Mr Gilligan.

It was made clear to him that he had broken civil service rules by having unauthorised contact with a journalist, but "that was the end of it", said a spokesman.



A police officer in the area where the body was found
Downing Street says "normal personnel procedures" were followed after Dr Kelly volunteered that he might have been the source of Mr Gilligan's report.

It was made clear to Dr Kelly that his name was likely to become public knowledge because he was one of only a small number of people it could have been about, a spokesman said.

After questioning Dr Kelly earlier this week, the Commons foreign affairs select committee said it was "most unlikely" he was the main source for the BBC story.

And they said Dr Kelly, who has worked as a weapons inspector in Iraq, had been "poorly treated" by the government - a charge strongly rejected by the MoD.

Committee chairman Donald Anderson told the BBC his "heart went out" to Dr Kelly's family as the search for the official went on.

Another member of the committee, Tory John Maples said he was "speechless" after hearing of the discovery of a body.

"If it is (Dr Kelly), it is just awful. What can you say? Nothing," he said.

"There must be more to this than we had thought. I do not know what that means, I just think there is."

Tory MP Richard Ottaway, another committee member, said: "He is not used to the media glare, he is not used to the intense spotlight he has been put under."


The BBC has rejected Mr Anderson's claim that Mr Gilligan was an "unreliable witness" who had changed his story about the Iraq dossier claims when he met the committee in private on Thursday.

Very interesting...

[Edited on 18-7-2003 by Thorfinn Skullsplitter]

Sounds like the BBC had good motive to "Off" this guy. If he didn't indeed give enough information to Mr. Gilligan for this claim to be made and no other sources can be found, the BBC could stand liable for false statements themselves. Wow! Talk about "what goes around, comes around" So, if they take him out, he doesn't get to back his statement that he isn't the source. I guess the BBC doesn't want to be exposed as the New York Times was, making up news to suit their political agendas.

Originally posted by astrocreep
Sounds like the BBC had good motive to "Off" this guy. If he didn't indeed give enough information to Mr. Gilligan for this claim to be made and no other sources can be found, the BBC could stand liable for false statements themselves. Wow! Talk about "what goes around, comes around" So, if they take him out, he doesn't get to back his statement that he isn't the source. I guess the BBC doesn't want to be exposed as the New York Times was, making up news to suit their political agendas.

i think your barking up the wrong tree.
It will officially be suicide.

I believe Gilligan's chief source was someone very high up in the intelligence agencies, if that is the case, then the original source needed to be protected, basically the chief source is now off the hook, as only Kelly and Gilligan could have disclosed the source. I don't think Gilligan will be lining up to point the finger after what happened this morning.

And of course, because Kelly will be said to have killed himself, the general public will be convinsed he is to blame for the leak.

Astrocreep - This guy was not killed by the beeb, they would have just sacked Gilligan, besides Gilligan doesn't seem to be lying, but he has been sent a very harsh message this morning from the Intelligence agencies to keep his mouth well and truely shut on the matter.

"Astrocreep - This guy was not killed by the beeb, they would have just sacked Gilligan, besides Gilligan doesn't seem to be lying, but he has been sent a very harsh message this morning from the Intelligence agencies to keep his mouth well and truely shut on the matter. "

Oh I beg to differ..they wrote a story largely based on supposition, passed if off as fact and it turned out to have not only national but worldwide impact as well. Their source then begins to erode away along with their credibility. The New York Post canned Jason Blair but the stigma didn't leave with him.

Now, the BBC can claim that Mr. kelly did provide all the information and that he was just trying to protect himself. Who's going to argue it. Dr. Kelly. oops no, he can't. Thats right.

[Edited on 18-7-2003 by astrocreep]

Originally posted by astrocreep
"Astrocreep - This guy was not killed by the beeb, they would have just sacked Gilligan, besides Gilligan doesn't seem to be lying, but he has been sent a very harsh message this morning from the Intelligence agencies to keep his mouth well and truely shut on the matter. "

Oh I beg to differ..they wrote a story largely based on supposition, passed if off as fact and it turned out to have not only national but worldwide impact as well. Their source then begins to erode away along with their credibility. The New York Post canned Jason Blair but the stigma didn't leave with him.

Now, the BBC can claim that Mr. kelly did provide all the information and that he was just trying to protect himself. Who's going to argue it. Dr. Kelly. oops no, he can't. Thats right.

[Edited on 18-7-2003 by astrocreep]

I think you need to understand the story, Gilligan made the claim, Gilligan is a very well respected journalist here in the UK, he used to work for the Daily Telegraph, he was hired for by the BBC for their Radio 4 program, he is known to have unique access to sensitive sources.

www.hartford-hwp.com...

Gilligan is not a biased journalist, he is a defence specialist

media.guardian.co.uk...


And read these BBC statements, the first is from a couple of weeks ago, and second from last night.


www.bbc.co.uk...

www.bbc.co.uk...

Astrocreep, your theory is false, the BBC involved in the murder of a Government adviser, this is one conspiracy too far.
The Government would do anything to prove those claims, if they were true.

I promise you Astrocreep, if you are right then the BBC will be found out, the Government would love it.

Actually it's just dawned on me, Astrocreep are you...?
Alastair Campbell







i'm only joking, but Blair's chief spin doctor would love the BBC to be to blame for Kelly's death, and if there is any truth in the claim you can be sure that we will find out.

[Edited on 18-7-2003 by Peace]