A former Malaysian leader has condemned British Prime Minister Tony Blair and U.S. President George W. Bush as "child killers" and "war criminals."
Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad made his comments as he opened a war crimes conference in Kuala Lumpur. The former Malaysian leader also called Australian Prime Minister John Howard a ''pocket Bush" for his support of military action in Iraq.
The 81-year-old Mahathir hopes to use the conference to launch an unofficial tribunal that would condemn alleged war crimes in Iraq.
Seventeen Palestinians, Iraqis and Lebanese who say they are torture and abuse victims are also attending.
Mr. Mahathir served as prime minister for 22 years before retiring in late 2003, making him Malaysia's longest serving leader.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.