Scott Ritter
Scott Ritter | |
|---|---|
Ritter in 2007 | |
| Born | William Scott Ritter, Jr. July 15, 1961 Gainesville, Florida, U.S. |
| Education | Kaiserslautern American High School, Germany |
| Alma mater | Franklin and Marshall College |
| Occupations |
|
| Known for | Chief UNSCOM weapons inspector to Iraq, 1991–1998 |
| Spouse |
Marina Khatiashvili (m. 1991) |
| Children | 2 |
| Website | scottritterextra |
William Scott Ritter Jr. (born July 15, 1961) is an American former United States Marine Corps intelligence officer, former United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) weapons inspector, author, and commentator.
Ritter was a junior military analyst during Operation Desert Storm. He served as a member of UNSCOM overseeing the disarmament of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) in Iraq from 1991 to 1998, from which he resigned in protest. Later he became a critic of the Iraq War and United States foreign policy in the Middle East. In recent years, he has been a regular contributor to Russian state media outlets RT and Sputnik. He has visited Russia in support of Russia since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In June 2024, Ritter claimed that US authorities seized his passport and prevented him from visiting Russia.
In 2011, Ritter was convicted of several criminal offenses after engaging in sexually explicit online activity with a police officer who was posing as a 15 year-old girl.