Unilateral military actions against Iraq is unjustified and there have been no mass destruction weapons found in the country, said former United Nations weapons inspector Hans Blix.

The Iraq invasion was explained by "witch-hunters as self-defense against a perceived growing threat," but this was unacceptable and the war unjustified, the former UN official was quoted by Bangkok Post as saying on Tuesday.

"In legal terms, they argued that Saddam Hussein's regime had violated a number of UN resolutions and in political terms they said they would help establish democracy in the country. But in reality the UN inspectors found no evidence of weapons of mass destruction," said Blix.

Blix, who resigned from the UN in June, four months after the US-led invasion of Iraq, was giving a lecture on "Peace and Disarmament -- Prospects after Iraq" organized by the International Peace Foundation in Bangkok on Monday.

The only benefit to be derived from the war was to put an elected government in its place, which hopefully would bring peace and prosperity, but came at a very high price, said Blix.

Source: Xinhua