Saddam: we are no Talibans; Abu Zayed leads war American planning from Qatar
Iraq-Qatar, Politics, 1/8/2003

The US defense department announced yesterday the beginning of the arrival of planners team of the war against Iraq to al-Seleyah base in Qatar where the American forces established a center for the American military forces deployed in Asia and northern Africa.

The American military chief of staff Richard Mayors said that sending American troops to the Gulf region will increase from now on.

Meantime, Baghdad has started a diplomatic campaign next week towards Arab and world capital in order to restore back the initiative before the current inspection campaign will enter a decisive phase when the chairman of the UN inspection committee Hans Blix and the director of the International Agency for atomic Energy Muhammad al-Barade' will submit their reporters for two months of inspection of the Iraqi weapons to the UN security council on January 27th.

However, the director of the strategic communications leadership center Jim Wilnkson said that the planners for the war started arriving at al-Salelah base saying "you have to expect" continued redeployment ( for the American forces) in Qatar and other areas in support of the exerted diplomatic efforts ) to solve the Iraqi crisis.

The commander of the American army central leadership Gen. Tommy Francs left Qatar before Christmas together with part of the American forces which came to the base to take part in military maneuvers in December 2002.

In another development, two Iraqi citizens were killed and other 13 wounded in an American raid against southern Iraq. An Iraqi military spokesman said that the raid targeted civilian establishments in al-Amara area while the US central leadership said that the raid targeted Iraqi radars positions in that area.

Meantime, the Iraqi President Saddam Hussein yesterday accused the UN inspectors, for the second running day of spying, warning Washington that his army will not have the same fate as the Taliban's regime in Afghanistan.

In his meeting with Iraqi military men in Baghdad, Hussein said that the collapse of Taliban's regime "tempts the US to launch an aggression against Iraq but Taliban's regime did not collapse in fact; for it was not a state regime, rather a group of students ( in Arabic Taleb means student) as their names indicate." The Iraqi president explained that the most important factors behind disturbing the economic and social life in Afghanistan is that there is no oil while we are the country of oil and we do not import it to be confused while importing it."

The Iraqi president added "the acquired experience we lived in 1991 was an experience that no army in the world will have in confrontation of an advanced army in terms of weapons and instruments." After he had criticized the Arab states which permit the American forces to "occupy the Gulf," Saddam said "we do see now the inspection teams going to army units and asking about issues that do not relate to the mass destruction weapons. Therefore they ( the inspectors) are asking for intelligence information."

Previous Stories:
  On Sabri's visit to Iran   (1/7/2003)
  Syrian- Iraqi parliamentary talks   (1/7/2003)
  Saddam' s speech at Army's 82nd Foundation Anniversary   (1/7/2003)
  Qatar and the UN resolution on Iraq   (11/11/2002)
  Sabri in Doha today   (10/8/2002)
  Iraqi presidential envoy visits Doha on Monday   (10/4/2002)

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