Tony Blair urged to meet relatives of military personnel killed in Iraq

The mother of a Scottish serviceman killed in Iraq has called on Tony Blair to meet families who lost relatives in the war.

Rose Gentle said she wanted to look the former Prime Minister in the eye and ask: "Why did you send my son to his death?

Gentle said she held Blair responsible for the "murder" of her son, Gordon, in Basra in June 2004.

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Speaking after the publication of the Chilcot report, Gentle claimed the families asked to meet the former Prime Minister "years ago" and he walked away.​

"This is his opportunity to come and speak to the families now", she added.

"We've proved him wrong because everything that we've said from the start has actually came out today, and I think he thought 'they're going to give up and walk away."

Gentle was part of a group of bereaved relatives who spoke at a press conference after Sir John Chilcot unveiled his report.

The families were given three hours to go through the 2.6 million word report ahead of its official publication.

There were 179 British service personnel killed in Iraq.

Gentle added: "Today, what we've been hearing and what we've been reading has been really hard and I think that's why there's a lot of mothers and fathers that's been in tears today.

"A lot of us have held it back for weeks and what's been confirmed today has really gut-wrenched a lot of us."