Britain accuses Iraq of making anthrax warheads

The British foreign secretary, Robin Cook has accused Iraq of producing enough of the deadly toxin, anthrax, to fill two missiles warheads a week.

Weapons inspectors have repeatedly asserted that Iraq retains a capacity to make biological or chemical weapons, but it's the first time a senior Western political figure has accused Baghdad of manufacturing such agents on a routine basis.

The Iraqi deputy prime minister Tariq Aziz later described the accusation as a lie.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service