War on Iraq is legal rules Attorney General

A series of United Nations Security Council resolutions provides the legal basis for military action against Iraq, the Government's top law adviser said today.

The Attorney General Lord Goldsmith said in a written Parliamentary answer that the authority to use force against Iraq stemmed from the combined effect of resolutions 678, 687 and 1441.

Lord Goldsmith stated: "All of these resolutions were adopted under Chapter VII of the UN Charter which allows the use of force for the express purpose of restoring international peace and security."