Iraq: A Deadly Deception

An inside look at how world leaders and the American public were duped into a war that cost thousands of lives.

On the evening of 9/11, George W Bush made a vow to the American public - that he would defeat terrorism.

Unknown to those listening in shock to the presidential address, the president and his advisers had already begun planning their trajectory into an invasion of Iraq. It was packaged as "holding responsible the states who support terrorism" by Richard Perle, a Pentagon adviser between 2001 and 2003.

"I believe it represented a recognition that we would never succeed against the terrorists if we went after them one at a time and as long as governments were facilitating the organisation, training, equipping of, financing of terrorist organisations, we were never going to get it under control," says Perle.