You may remember the Sun’s headline “Brits 45mins from doom” that followed the publication of the dossier in September 2002 as Tony Blair’s government sought to justify the following year’s invasion of Iraq.
As you know, that alarmist nonsense, and the imminence of Saddam Hussein’s ability to deploy non-existent weapons of mass destruction, was later debunked.
But Monday’s Daily Record believes it is on altogether stronger ground with this headline: “World War Three could be just 30 SECONDS away as attacks on ISIS stepped up.”
Trinity Mirror’s Glasgow-based daily newspaper is clearly proud of its scoop, having tweeted it out to its readers.
What’s that? You want to know what the story says too? Well, it tells us that we are on the brink of war because “international tensions over powder keg Syria threaten to ignite.”
With Russian and American planes operating in “increasingly congested” airspace over Syria “military commanders fear a clash of warplanes, helicopters, drones, missiles and artillery” with “global ramifications.”
It cites an unnamed “military expert” as warning: “Rationalising such a complex airspace is not possible – like getting your mind round a Rubik’s Cube that moves around at Mach 1.5, then adding a dozen more.
And it also quotes Andrew Foxall, “Russia expert at the Henry Jackson Society think tank” as saying an error could lead to a “diplomatic incident of catastrophic proportions.”
But what about the 30 seconds business, you ask? That hinges on the interpretation contained in the article’s 10th paragraph:
“In one terrifying close call Lt Gen Charles Brown, commander of the American air campaign in Syria, said US and Russian planes came within just 20 miles of each other – which, at the speeds they travel, is as little as 30 seconds from a disastrous impact.”
I’d reach for the tin hats now.
PS: I see the Daily Mirror also ran this nonsense, but avoided the 30-second headline.
