Bush wanted to bomb Al Jazeera?

[RACooper]

Surprised this hasn't shown up on the site already...

Anyways I'm sure we've all heard about how an alleged memo purporting to detail Blair talking Bush out of bombing Al Jazeera's HQ. I also assume that most know the White House has called the allegations so outlandish they deserve no response. But now it has taken an interesting new twist, at least in the UK - while neither confirming nor denying the document's authenticity or allegations, the British government has now effectively placed a publication ban on the story... citing violation of the Official Secrets Act if the publish the memo or further details. So if it's not real how can they be violating the Official Secrets Act? hmmm....

Warning over Jazeera bombing report
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain has warned media organizations they are breaking the law if they publish details of a leaked document said to show U.S. President George W. Bush wanted to bomb Arabic television station Al Jazeera.

The government's top lawyer warned editors in a note after the Daily Mirror newspaper reported on Monday that a secret British government memo said British Prime Minister Tony Blair had talked Bush out of bombing the broadcaster in April last year.

Several British newspapers reported the attorney general's note on Tuesday and repeated the Mirror's allegations, which the White House said were "so outlandish" they did not merit a response. Blair's office declined to comment.

Al Jazeera, which has repeatedly denied U.S. accusations it sides with insurgents in Iraq, called on Britain and the United States to state quickly whether the report was accurate.

"If the report is correct then this would be both shocking and worrisome not only to Al Jazeera but to media organizations across the world," the Qatar-based station said in a statement.

The story would also be a shock for Qatar, a small Gulf state which cultivates good relations with Washington.

more at:
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsAr...SA-JAZEERA.xml