Hans Blix: Iraq War was a violation of U.N. charter

Hans Blix: Iraq War was a terrible mistake and violation of U.N. charter

By Hans Blix, Special to CNN

March 19, 2013 -- Updated 0836 GMT (1636 HKT)

U.S. Marines in northern Kuwait gear up after receiving orders to cross the Iraqi border on March 20, 2003. It has been 10 years since the American-led invasion of Iraq that toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein. Look back at moments from the war and the legacy it left behind. For more, view CNN's complete coverage of the Iraq War anniversary.

HIDE CAPTION

The Iraq war, 10 years on

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STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Blix: Lead-up to war shows we must rely on international inspectors' reports
• War aimed to eliminate non-existent WMD, but ended up replacing tyranny with anarchy
• Blix: Invading a country is easy for great power, but achieving political aims is more difficult
• Blix: It is likely my U.N. office in New York was bugged in lead-up to invasion of Iraq

Editor's note: Ten years ago the war in Iraq began. This week we focus on the people involved in the war, and the lives that changed forever. Hans Blix was the head of U.N. weapons inspections in Iraq (UNMOVIC) in the lead-up to the 2003 invasion.

(CNN) -- On March 19, 2003, Iraq was invaded by an "alliance of willing states" headed by the U.S. and UK. My U.N. inspection team and I had seen it coming -- and I felt an emptiness when, three days before the invasion, an American official called me to "ask" that we withdraw from the country.