>IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 113 >September 1, 2000 > >PLEASE NOTE THE MARIAM APPEAL HAS MOVED. >THE NEW CONTACT NUMBERS ARE: >TEL: +44 (0)20 7403 5200 >FAX: +44 (0)20 7 403 3823 >---------------------------------------------------------------------------- >--------------------- > >LATEST NEWS+++++++++++++++++++++++++++ > >Patriot missiles may be deployed in Israel on Iraq fears > >By The Associated Press Washington--Sept. 1--The Pentagon put an Army >Patriot antimissile battery on alert Thursday for a possible deployment to >Israel because of concern that Iraq may decide to strike during the U.S. >presidential campaign, The Washington Post reports. > >* * * The action is in response to concerns that Iraq may decide to fire >surface-to-surface missiles at Israel as the presidential campaign gets into >full swing after Labor Day, Monday, said the report published on the Post >Web site Thursday night. > >The unit on alert is the 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, based near >Frankfurt, Germany, the report said. > >The Pentagon did not immediately return a call seeking comment late Thursday >night. U.S. military officials in Europe could not be reached. > >The Patriot missile is a guided supersonic surface-to-air missile designed >to intercept enemy aircraft and missiles, and was used extensively in the >1991 Persian Gulf War. >During the war, 39 Israel Scud missiles were fired at Israel during the >Patriot's first deployment. The Patriots were mostly unsuccessful in >deterring Iraq's attacks, which damaged Tel Aviv neighborhoods. > >In December 1998, the Pentagon sent the missiles to Israel to head off any >possible attacks while Iraq refused to cooperate with U.N. weapons >inspectors. > >The crisis culminated in a 70-hour air war against Baghdad. No Iraqi >missiles were fired at Israel during that time. > >Defense officials did not say whether the United States was acting out of a >general concern or was provoked by hard evidence, the Post said, though in >the past Iraq President Saddam Hussein has provoked confrontations during >sensitive moments. > >U.S. and British warplanes have had many confrontations with Iraq, >patrolling over northern and southern Iraq in "no-fly" zones set up after >the war to protect Kurdish and Shiite minorities from the Iraqi military. >Iraq maintains the zones violate its sovereignty and has been challenging >the patrols since December 1998. > >On Wednesday, an official Iraqi newspaper said that U.S. jets bombed a >village in southern Iraq, injuring a child and two others. The paper quoted >a statement by a military spokesman that Iraqi air defenses hit one of the >planes. > >U.S. officials confirmed coalition aircraft struck Iraq on Wednesday, but >said they targeted an air-defense command post and anti-aircraft artillery >sites. The officials said the planes returned safely. End > > >Unexploded bomb from Gulf war goes off in Basra; no casualties >Text of report by Iraqi satellite TV on 31st August. An unexploded bomb >dropped during the 30-state aggression against Iraq badly damaged a house >belonging to a citizen of the Al-Faw district in the Governorate of Basra. >This is not the first time that a bomb dropped by the aggressors has damaged >Iraqi citizens' property without causing any harm to them... > > >Iraq says U.S. warplanes injure 3 in south > >BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) _ U.S. jets have bombed a village in southern Iraq, >injuring a child and two other people, the official al-Qadissiya newspaper >reported Thursday. > >The paper, quoting a statement by a military spokesman issued late >Wednesday, also claimed Iraqi air defenses hit one of the planes. > >Also Thursday, Baghdad newspapers carried a speech by President Saddam >Hussein in which he praised the performance of his air defenses and urged >other army units to follow their example. > >Saddam, addressing army chiefs and military industries experts, said he was >not worried about Iraq's confrontation with the United States dragging on. >``We are going to beat (them). ...And it is only a matter of time for that >to happen,'' he said. > >A statement from Florida-based U.S. Central Command confirmed coalition >aircraft struck Iraq on Wednesday, but said they targeted an air-defense >command post and anti-aircraft artillery sites. The statement did not >mention any casualties. All planes, it said, had returned safely. >The Iraqi newspaper said the attack took place in the southern Muthana >province, 200 kilometers (125 miles) south of Baghdad. > >``Three innocent people, one of them a child, were wounded and a number of >houses were damaged in al-Najam village in the province of Muthana,'' the >paper said, quoting the military spokesman. > >U.S. and British planes patrol skies over northern and southern Iraq in >``no-fly zones'' set up after the 1991 Gulf War to protect Kurdish and >Shiite minorities from the Iraqi military. Iraq maintains the zones violate >its sovereignty and has been challenging the patrols since December 1998. > > >U.N. Arms Inspectors Back Down; Security Council Members Urge Agency Not to >Confront Iraq >From WASHINGTON POST, August 31st, 2000 >To avoid a confrontation with Baghdad at an inopportune time, the United >States and other permanent members of the Security Council have persuaded >the chairman of a new U.N. arms agency to cancel his planned announcement >that weapons inspectors are ready to return to Iraq. > >The move follows repeated statements by the Iraqi government that it will >never submit to inspections by the U.N. Monitoring, Verification and >Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC). > >Diplomats said U.S., Russian, Chinese and French members of a panel that >oversees UNMOVIC advised its chairman, Hans Blix of Sweden, to drop a >conclusion from a draft report that 44 inspectors have completed training >and are "now in a position to start activities in Iraq," including >"baseline" inspections of facilities that might be involved in building >prohibited weapons. >The final version of the report, released to the council today, says the >arms experts "could plan and commence" preliminary tasks to prepare for >future inspections. > >Given the uncertainty, more than half of the newly trained weapons >specialists have been sent back to their home countries. Their names will go >on a roster and they may be called up for service in the future. > >"The U.S. and Russia agreed that it was not appropriate to give the >impression that Mr. Blix and the commission was ready to go back into Iraq," >said a Security Council diplomat. "They cautioned that this might create a >climate of confrontation at an inappropriate time." The Security Council's >five permanent members--the United States, Russia, China, France and >Britain--want to avoid a clash over Iraq policy when their heads of state >meet at the United Nations next week during the so-called Millennium Summit >of World Leaders, according to diplomats. > >A U.S. official also contended that it would be premature to re-launch >weapons inspections in Iraq. "They have more work to do," the official said. >"While UNMOVIC has finished its first stage of preparation, it's a plain >fact that they are not yet ready to launch a full-scale program in Iraq." >Despite the reversal, Blix reported that he would continue preparing for a >resumption of on-site inspections. He said a new team of inspectors would be >trained in France from Nov. 7 to Dec. 8, and U.N. officials said he was >talking with various countries about technical assistance, such as >communications equipment and surveillance aircraft. >Under the terms of the 1991 cease-fire that ended the Persian Gulf War, Iraq >is prohibited from possessing medium- and long-range missiles or nuclear, >chemical and biological weapons. > >A former inspection agency, known as the U.N. Special Commission, or UNSCOM, >pulled its inspectors out of Iraq on the eve of a U.S.-British air campaign >in December 1998. > >UNMOVIC may face a renewed challenge from Iraq's allies when the council >debates the future of inspections during the week of Sept. 11. Russia has >told Blix that the participation of some former members of UNSCOM on the new >team--particularly two Russian arms experts, Nikita Smidovich and Igor >Mitrokhin--would make it difficult for Moscow to press Baghdad to cooperate. >"We warned [Blix] that he should take into account that Iraq might not be >satisfied with this decision" allowing former UNSCOM members to serve in >UNMOVIC, said Gennadi Gatilov, Russia's deputy representative to the United >Nations. He noted that the two inspectors were associated with some of the >U.N.'s most aggressive inspections. "We will see how this situation develops >in the future, but I personally envisage difficulties," he said. > >In an unusual twist, the United States and Britain have defended the Russian >inspectors while their own government has pressed Blix to get rid of them or >push them into the background. U.S. officials praised the Russians as >experienced and professional inspectors with unparalleled knowledge of the >Iraqi weapons program. > > >Russian airline ready to resume flights to Iraq this year. > > MOSCOW, August 31 (Itar-Tass) -- A Russian airline is ready to resume >direct > flights between Moscow and Baghdad already in 2000, even before >international > sanctions imposed on Iraq are lifted. > "Vnukovo Airlines (VAL) is ready for resumption, and we are planning two > flights a week with the use of two or three aircraft," VAL deputy board > chairman Sergei Isakov told Itar-Tass on Thursday. > However, it is up to the Russian government to decide when to launch >flights > to Baghdad's international Saddam airport and which company - VAL or the > biggest national air carrier Aeroflot - will do the job. > Nevertheless, Isakov claimed that VAL had "a moral right" to take to an >Iraqi > route because it had made its first sanction-era flight to war-battered > country as early as 1997. > >Indonesia, Iraq set up early soccer final's match >From THE JAKARTA POST, August 31st, 2000 > JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia and Iraq assured themselves of tickets for > the final after scoring 1-0 wins each in their second matches of the > Independence Cup soccer tournament at Senayan Stadium here on > Wednesday. Midfielder Bima Sakti slammed the winner for Indonesia in > the 30th minute as the host team found that its flurry of attacks > were met with a solid China Taipei defense. > Iraq, which played in the afternoon match, booked a place in > Sunday's final through Emad A. Mohammad, who has now tallied three > goals to top the scorers' list. > Indonesia and Iraq, which have now collected six points after two > wins, will have a chance to warm up before the final on Friday in a > match to decide the group winner. Myanmar will face China Taipei in > Friday's other match. > >Kurdish KDP forces kill 21 Islamic group militiamen in border area > > Text of report by Iraqi Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) satellite > TV on 31st August > > The Directorate of Security in Choman has released the following > statement on the incident that took place in the area yesterday: > A group calling itself the Islamic Unification [Arabic: Tawhid] > group has for some time established a military base for its armed > militia in Sakran Mountain, Haji Umran area [near border with Iran]. > The group has every now and then been attacking villages in the > area, and it became a source of threat and intimidation to citizens. > Moreover, It blockaded roads and engaged in other unlawful > practices. > In a bid investigate the citizens' complaints and find out what was > going on, a peshmerga [Kurdish militia] force moved to the area > yesterday, and on the way they fell into an ambush set by the > unification group's armed militia, as a result of which two > Kurdistan Democratic Party, KDP, peshmerga fighters were martyred > and seven others were injured. > An armed clash ensued, and another peshmerga force moved towards to > the scene of the fighting and shooting, and came face to face with > the unification group attackers. As a result 21 members of the > so-called unification group were killed and a number of others were > injured. > >Iraq nets $3.8 bil. in 79 days of oilexports: U.N. >From Kyodo News International August 30th, 2000 >BAGHDAD, Aug. 30 (Kyodo) _ Iraq has exported $3.8 billion worth of oil under >the U.N. oil-for-food program in 79 days ending last Friday, a U.N. office >in Iraq said Wednesday. > >''During the period from 19 to 25 August, 2000, Iraq exported 17.2 million >barrels of oil for revenue estimated at around $479 million,'' the office >said in a statement. >''The revenue generated from the beginning of phase eight (of the program) >on June 9 is now around $3.8 billion.'' Iraq and the United Nations agreed >on the program in December 1996, allowing Baghdad to sell oil to pay for >food, medicine and essentials for its population of 25 million. > >The program has been implemented under strict U.N. monitoring through >six-month phases successively renewed by the U.N. Security Council (UNSC). >For the first three phases, the UNSC put a ceiling of $2.2 billion on the >value of oil Iraq could export. From phase four onward, however, the ceiling >was lifted. There is currently no limit to the value of oil Iraq can export. >Since the program began on Dec. 10, 1996, Iraq has exported 1.99 billion >barrels of oil valued at roughly $32.8 billion, according to U.N. data. >Last week, the Security Council's Sanctions Committee approved ''one >additional new contract for the sale of Iraqi oil under phase eight. This >brings the total of approved contracts to 98 with a volume of over 384 >million barrels,'' the release stated. > >It said about 66% of oil revenues goes to humanitarian programs, 30% to war >reparations, 2.2% to the U.N. for costs associated with administrating the >program and 0.8% for administration of the U.N.'s Monitoring, Verification >and Inspection Commission, an inspection body charged with disarming Iraq of >its weapons of mass destruction. > > >RUSSIAN PLANE VISITS SADDAM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT. >From IPR MIDDLE EAST NEWS, August 29th, 2000 > Without UN authorization, a Russian plane flew out of > the newly reopened Saddam International Airport in Baghdad on > 20 August. The plane had brought a delegation of Russian > officials who were exploring prospects f > or Russian firms to > develop Iraq's energy sector, INA reported. > >U.S., U.K. PLANES INCREASINGLY UNDER FIRE. > > Iraqi anti-aircraft guns are shooting at American and British planes >approximately 12 times a month, Michael Evans, defense editor of the London >"Sunday Times," wrote on 22 August. That has sparked new concerns about >Iraq's short- range missile program. Iraq has begun to test the new Al- >Samud missile. While its range is less than a hundred miles, thus not >violating the ceasefire agreement signed by Saddam Husseyn following the >1991 > Gulf War, the lack of UN weapons inspectors has raised fears that Iraq >could be developing longer-range weapons. In the northern no-fly zone, >American and British aircraft were fired on more than 270 times by Iraqi >anti-airc raft artillery and 14 times by surface to air missiles between >October 1999 and June 2000. In the southern no-fly zone, the Iraqis tried to >bring the aircraft down 98 > times with anti-aircraft artillery, and launched 45 surface- >to-air-missiles. In the northern no-fly zone, aircraft > dropped 129 bombs on Iraq air defense facilities; in the southern no-fly >zone, allied aircraft only responded on 12 > occasions. > >Gagging order upset for Cook: ords ruling will allow arms for Iraq pair to >seek withheld papers >From THE GUARDIAN, August 29th, 2000 > By DAVID HENCKE AND ROB EVANS > The government is facing an embarrassing double setback to its plans > to suppress intelligence reports in the case of Paul and John > Grecian, former directors of Ordtec, who were prosecuted for > illegally selling military equipment to President Saddam Hussein. > The two men are suing customs and excise for millions of pounds in > damages for malicious prosecution after the appeal court overturned > the conviction of Paul Grecian and charges against his father, John, > were dropped during plea bargaining. > _______________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. 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