Will Hutton Inquiry Leave a Political Body Trail?

Lord Hutton, who has already heard evidence into the circumstances leading up to Kelly's death from Prime Minister Tony Blair, his defence secretary and top aides, said some witnesses will be recalled for cross examination when the inquiry resumes on Sept. 15.

"The fact that I recall a witness to give further evidence in the second stage of the inquiry does not necessarily mean that I regard that person as a possible object of criticism," Hutton said.

The four weeks of hearings so far have focused on whether the government deliberately exposed Kelly as the source of a BBC report which accused the government of deliberately exaggerating claims about Saddam Hussein's weapons program in a dossier making the case for war with Iraq. The dossier claimed that Saddam had the capability of deploying weapons of mass destruction within 45 minutes.

Kelly denied being the source for the BBC story when he was questioned by a parliamentary committee, just days before he was found dead in a park near his home.

Evidence presented in the inquiry so far suggests that Kelly did take his own life. The pathologist who examined Kelly's body said he had probably died from blood loss after slashing his wrist, though he had also taken up to 30 prescription painkillers.

A key question now is who was behind the government strategy of naming Kelly as the source, as this is believed to have added to his mental strain in the week before his death.

Hoon in the hot seat

Much of the speculation is revolving around the role of Defense Secretary Geoff Hoon. During his testimony, Hoon said he was not involved in any discussions about going public with Kelly's identity. But on Thursday, Hoon's special advisor, Richard Taylor, told the inquiry that Hoon was present at a key meeting on July 9, in which the policy of naming Kelly was approved. In light of Taylor's testimony, observers at the inquiry say it's almost certain that Hoon will be recalled for more questioning during the second stage.

Blair admitted during his testimony that his director of communications and strategy, Alastair Campbell, had wanted Kelly named as the source of the BBC report. Campbell said that he followed the prime minister's instructions to leave the matter to the Ministry of Defense.

Campbell announced his resignation last week, but insisted his decision had been made long ago and had nothing to do with Kelly's death or the contentious Iraq dossier. Campbell said he had no input into the dossier, but e-mails shown to the inquiry prove that he and other top aides pressed for it to be as hard-hitting as possible.

Kelly not alone in misgivings

Just where the now famous claim that Saddam Hussein could unleash weapons of mass destruction with only 45 minutes' notice came from remains a mystery. But from the testimony of Brian Jones, who headed a team of chemical and biological weapons experts on the Ministry of Defense's intelligence service, it has become clear that Kelly was not the only government expert who was uncomfortable with the strength of the language used in the dossier.

"I had some concerns about the 45 minute point myself," Jones told the inquiry. "Some of my staff had said that they were unhappy with all the detail that was in the dossier. My expert analyst on chemical weapons expressed particular concern."

The Hutton inquiry, through its use of testimony combined with internal e-mails and memos that were never meant to become the subject of such public scrutiny, is shining an unprecedented light on the inner workings of the Blair's government. Few reputations have emerged unblemished after the first stage of the inquiry. At a news conference on Thursday, Blair declined to say whether he would resign if Hutton criticizes his government.

The BBC, too, is unlikely to escape criticism after an internal memo showed that editors believed the report accusing the government of sexing up the Iraq dossier had been "marred by flawed reporting."