MR Westmoreland believes an attack on Iraq would be a war against "the people of Iraq" (Letters, March 12).

If he believes British and US troops are going to war on the Iraqi people he has no understanding of the matter.

The main reason for the West's views on Iraq is because it is a ruthless, brutal dictatorship with Sadam Hussain terrorising his nation. He is against the West and their democratic system and will do all he can to harm it, including building weapons of mass destruction and helping terrorist groups to achieve similar aims. According to Mr. Westmoreland, we should sit back and do nothing - leave his arsenal unchecked, ignore his crimes against humanity and remove all sanctions. This sort of attitude has developed during the past 30 years allowing terrorist groups (such as those supported in Iraq) to cause such destruction as we saw in New York.

Gareth Alston,

Burton Stone Lane,

York.

Updated: 10:14 Monday, March 18, 2002