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Keeping it secret to protect relations

The Guardian reports on what must be seen as an extraordinary story "How Labour used the law to keep criticism of Israel secret - Concern over nuclear arsenal removed from Iraq dossier":

"The full extent of government anxiety about the state of British-Israel relations can be exposed for the first time today in a secret document seen by the Guardian.

The document reveals how the Foreign Office successfully fought to keep secret any mention of Israel contained on the first draft of the controversial, now discredited Iraq weapons dossier. At the heart of it was nervousness at the top of government about any mention of Israel's nuclear arsenal in an official paper accusing Iraq of flouting the UN's authority on weapons of mass destruction.

The dossier was made public this week, but the Foreign Office succeeded before a tribunal in having the handwritten mention of Israel kept secret."

Read the complete piece here.

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