London: Controversial Labour MP George Galloway on April 22 denied reports he
received money from Saddam Hussein's regime.
He threatened legal action after it was claimed that a confidential memorandum sent
to Saddam by his head of intelligence revealed Galloway had asked a secret agent for
a greater cut of Iraq's exports under the oil-for-food programme.
According to the 'Daily Telegraph', the spy chief wrote a letter to Saddam in
January 2000 which revealed the MP for Glasgow Kelvin took a slice of oil earnings
worth £ 375,000 a year.
The newspaper said the left-wing MP, who fiercely opposed the United States-led
military action, entered into partnership with a named Iraqi oil broker to sell oil
on the international market.
'The Telegraph' said the papers were found by one of its journalists in the looted
foreign ministry in Baghdad.
The documents suggested while he was campaigning for his anti-war charity, the
Mariam Appeal, Galloway was conducting a relationship with Iraqi intelligence behind
the scenes.
In a statement, Galloway insisted the documents were either forged or doctored and
were designed to discredit him because of his opposition to the war.
He said, "I have never solicited nor received money from Iraq for our campaign
against war and sanctions.
"I have never seen a barrel of oil, never owned one, never bought one, never sold
one."
Galloway added the newspaper's claim that he had met Iraqi intelligence officials
was incorrect "to the best of my knowledge".
He said, "Given that I have had access over the years to Iraq's political
leadership, most often the Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz, I would have absolutely
no reason to be meeting with an official of Iraqi intelligence."
Galloway said he had not seen the documents because he was out of the country
writing a book about Iraq.
But he added, "From the way they have been described to me, I can state that they
bear all the hallmarks of having been either forged or doctored and are designed to
discredit those who stood against the war."
They were part of what he described as a "smear campaign against those who stood
against the illegal and bloody war on Iraq and against its occupation by foreign
forces."
Galloway added, "The idea that such documents have, as if to order, come to light
just days after the massive assault on Baghdad, the looting and destruction of its
ministries and government buildings and the chaos in the country, must be treated as
highly suspect."
