"I have never seen such a level of worry and despair among those who have been involved in the diplomatic field ever before," said Tickell

LONDON, April 27 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – British Prime Minister Tony Blair faced Monday, April 26, a withering and unprecedented criticism from the most senior former officials in the Foreign Office for toeing the U.S. line in the Middle East and occupied Iraq.

Departing from the usual measured language of diplomacy, 52 British diplomats put their names to a letter rebuking Blair for the acquiescence to U.S. President George W. Bush's backing of Israeli Premier Ariel Sharon’s controversial disengagement plan, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).

They described the plan, which will see the evacuation of all Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip only to occupy more Palestinian lands in the West Bank, as "one-sided and illegal".

"If that is unacceptable or unwelcome there is no case for supporting policies which are doomed to failure," wrote the signatories, the vast majority of whom were ex-ambassadors, many with considerable experience in the Middle East.

The British prime minister has insisted that this does not spell the end for the stalled internationally-brokered peace roadmap, but the diplomats disagreed.

"Our dismay at this backward step is heightened by the fact that you yourself seem to have endorsed it, abandoning the principles which for nearly four decades have guided international efforts to restore peace in the Holy Land."

Oliver Miles, former ambassador to Libya, said it was Blair's press conference with Bush in Washington two weeks ago that spurred him to act.

Blair followed the U.S. lead in endorsing Sharon's plan and U.S. guarantees for Israel, which eliminate the inalienable right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes inside what is now Israel.

The British and U.S. endorsement of Sharon's plan would "cost yet more Israeli and Palestinian blood", the veteran diplomats warned.

The urged Blair to use his "influence" on the United States to secure a change of policies "doomed to failure".

"We believe that the need for such influence is now a matter of the highest urgency," said the extremely blunt letter.

Among the signatories were a series of well-respected figures, including ex-ambassadors to both Iraq and Israel, as well as Marrack Goulding, the former head of peacekeeping for the United Nations and Sir Crispin Tickell, who served as Britain's ambassador to the U.N.

Tickell told the Independent newspaper -- which front-paged the text of the letter -- that feelings among his former colleagues were unprecedented.

"I have never seen such a level of worry and despair among those who have been involved in the diplomatic field ever before," he said.

No Effective Plan 

The diplomats had equally harsh words about the U.S. and British roles in the occupation of Iraq, especially after the latest U.S. offensive and bombardment of Fallujah, which left more than 600 Iraqis, mostly women and children, killed and at least 1500 others wounded.

"The conduct of the war in Iraq has made it clear that there was no effective plan for the post-Saddam settlement," they averred.

"All those with experience of the area predicted that the occupation of Iraq would meet serious and stubborn resistance, as has proved to be the case.

"To describe the resistance as led by terrorists, fanatics and foreigners is neither convincing nor helpful," the veteran diplomats said.

In their letter, they voiced anxieties "in the hope that they will be addressed in parliament and will lead to a fundamental reassessment".

Blair is pondering now how best to respond to this unprecedented criticism of his policies.

Blair's official spokesman only said Monday that the diplomats were "entitled to their views", adding that a further response to the letter would come "in due course".

On April 17, over 1,000 protestors converged outside Downing Street demanding Blair to withdraw troops from Iraq and withhold support for American recognition of Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories.

The Legal Action Against War, a British anti-war group, said in March it wanted the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague to consider whether Blair and his government officials should be tried for war crimes over the Iraq occupation.

Click here to read the letter in full