U.S. Senate Committee Demands CIA Documents on Iraq Intelligence by Tomorrow

The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence has set a deadline of noon tomorrow for the CIA to provide documents and interviews sought by the committee for its inquiry into U.S. prewar intelligence on Iraq, according to the New York Times (see GSN, Oct. 29).

Committee Chairman Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) and top Democrat Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) made their demand in a letter sent yesterday to CIA Director George Tenet. While the letter did not specify what documents or personnel the committee was seeking, it did say the committee was still seeking an explanation as to “inconsistencies” among intelligence assessments about disputed evidence that suggested Iraq had sought to obtain uranium from Niger, the Times reported.

“In light of the agency’s many other responsibilities, the committee has been patient, but we now need immediate access to this information,” Roberts and Rockefeller wrote (Douglas Jehl, New York Times, Oct. 30).

U.S. intelligence agencies are providing large amounts of information to the committee to aid its inquiry, CIA spokesman Bill Harlow said.

“The intelligence community is working hard to fulfill the committee’s requests and will continue to do so,” Harlow said (John Lumpkin, Associated Press/Yahoo!News, Oct. 30).

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