UK reviews Iraq sanctions

Images of wounded civilians appeared on Iraqi TV after the attack

The special relationship between the United States and Britain is perhaps not as close as it first appeared.

Questions are being asked about whether the Foreign Office knew of Friday's airstrike on Iraq in advance, after a parliamentary answer released the day before the raid indicated that a review of the sanctions against Iraq was possible.

Despite this, the official line from government continues to be fully supportive of the action against Baghdad.

The Foreign Office Minister Brian Wilson insisted that ministers were not kept in the dark about Friday's raid and there was no contradiction in the British government pursuing a review of sanctions while participating in air strikes against Baghdad.

This could be the first real chink of light in a sanctions regime that is over a decade old, and which critics claim has lead to countless deaths amongst ordinary Iraqis.