Dominique de Villepin Under Investigation in Sarkozy Smear

[onedomino]

You remember Dominique de Villepin. He was the French Foreign Minister who organized the UNSC against America prior to the beginning of the Iraq War. Villepin and Chirac threatened a French veto against UNSC sanctioned military action in Iraq. Villepin also visited the capitals of then UNSC non-permanent members in an effort to get them to vote against UNSC sanctioned military action. Later, "the Volcker report said 172 French companies, including Peugeot and Renault Véhicules Industriels, violated the terms of the humanitarian program (Iraq oil for food program) from 2000 to 2003." http://www.cfr.org/publication/10675/. Anyway, here's the latest on Villepin. Seems they play rough in French politics:

Police Search Villepin's Home Over Anti-Sarkozy Smear Campaign
By John Lichfield in Paris
Published: 06 July 2007

complete article: http://news.independent.co.uk/europe/article2739767.ece

French magistrates have searched the home of the former prime minister, Dominique de Villepin, looking for evidence that he tried to "smear" Nicolas Sarkozy to wreck his chances of becoming President.

Judicial sources said M. de Villepin is likely to be formally accused of "complicity in false accusations" in the next few days.

Deleted files discovered on a computer belonging to a key witness in the affair have strengthened allegations that M. de Villepin, then foreign minister, and President Jacques Chirac tried to make use of false allegations of corruption against M. Sarkozy in early 2004. M. de Villepin, who stood down as prime minister when M. Sarkozy was elected President in May, denied any attempt to damage his former colleague.

Sources close to the investigation said, however, that the magistrates had enough evidence to place M. de Villepin under "formal investigation". Such a step against a recently serving prime minister would be unprecedented.