Al-Joumhoreyah: Hussein threatens to destroy Qatar if Iraq is attacked from it
Iraq-Qatar, Politics, 9/12/2002

The Egyptian daily al-Joumhoreyah said in Wednesday that the Iraqi President Saddam Hussein threatened to destroy Qatar if Doha permits the US to use its military bases in attacking Iraq.

The paper quoted Iraqi sources as saying that the Iraqi president launched the threats during his meeting in Baghdad recently with the Qatari foreign minister Hamad Bin Jasem Bin Jaber al-Thani.

The sources described the meeting as the most difficult position the Qatari foreign minister had to face.

It continued that Sheikh Hamad then headed to Iraq carrying a message from the USA on the need of opening Iraq's doors before the UN inspectors, otherwise "hell" is coming.

Al- Joumhoreyah added that Saddam continued listening to the Qatari minister until he said that the US placed at the Aided military base weapons he has never seen before that will be used in the attack, then the Iraqi president said to the Qatari minister that his country will not accept such a threat.

Saddam was quoted saying to Sheikh Hamad "if Qatar accepted to be a hireling, and to stand with the enemy of the Arab nation, Iraq will not accept that, nor attacking any other Arab country."

The Iraqi president also threatened to destroy Qatar if it permits the US to use al-Aided base in launching attacks against Iraq. The sources said that the Qatari minister left the meeting very upset and left Baghdad immediately.

Previous Stories:
  Qatar's FM talks in Baghdad   (8/28/2002)
  Al-Jazeera: Qatar denies permitting US attacks against Iraq   (8/27/2002)
  Qatar's foreign minister heads today for Baghdad   (8/26/2002)

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