This is the top headline on YAHOO/REUTERS...at 1:48am Los Angeles time.

U.S. Said to Doubt British Intel on Iraq

By JOHN SOLOMON, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Before and after President Bush ( news -web sites ) claimed in January that Iraq was seeking uranium in Africa, U.S. intelligence officials expressed doubts about the British intelligence report that Bush cited to back up his allegation, senior U.S. officials said.

Those doubts were relayed to British officials before they made them public and across several agencies of the federal government before Bush gave his State of the Union speech, the officials said.

CBS, ABC and CNN reported Thursday that CIA officials who saw a draft of Bush's speech even questioned whether his statement was too strong given the quality of the British intelligence. But the remark was left in, provided it was attributed to the British...






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