WASHINGTON: A high-level White House intelligence team said Iraq under Saddam never posed a threat to the United States but it was considered as one by Israel that is why Washington launched the war.

One of the main reasons behind the 2003 US-led invasion was to protect Israeli interests in the region, Philip Zelikow, who is now the executive director of the 9/11 investigation panel, said according to an article on Inter Press Service news agency.

Zelikow remarked about "the unstated threat" during his tenure on a well-connected body known as the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board (PFIAB), which reports directly to the president. He served on the board between 2001 and 2003.

His comments contradict with the justifications provided by the Bush administration, which has never linked Iraq with Israel’s security.

On September 10, 2002, Zelikow told a crowd at the University of Virginia speaking on behalf of a team of foreign policy experts evaluating the impact of 9/11 and the future of the US’ war on terror: "Why would Iraq attack America or use nuclear weapons against us? I'll tell you what I think the real threat (is) and actually has been since 1990--it's the threat against Israel."

"And this is the threat that dare not speak its name, because the Europeans don't care deeply about that threat, I will tell you frankly. And the American government doesn't want to lean too hard on it rhetorically, because it is not a popular sell," he added.