US forces detain Lt. Gen. Amin, and al-Zubaidi; Garner meets today
Iraq-USA, Politics, 4/28/2003

The US forces yesterday arrested Mohammed Mushin Al-Zubaidi who installed himself as a chairman for Baghdad's municipality. Captain David Conoly, the American military spokesman said that al-Zubeidi was arrested because he does not support the American forces and because he practices the post of the chairman of the municipality of Baghdad. A post which no one had appointed him in, noting that other 7 persons accompanying al-Zubeidi were also arrested, giving no more details.

Barbara Bodine, Senior ORHA (Organization for Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance) Representative for the central region in Iraq, stated the next day that Al-Zubaidi was not the mayor of Baghdad as he had not been elected and had not been recognized by the interim Coalition authority administering Iraq.

The US said that previously on April 18, CFLCC representatives met with Al Zubaidi and informed him that he had no authority. Although he acknowledged his the lack of authority, he continued to subvert Coalition authority and their attempts to restore public services by replacing people who were working with the Coalition with his own people. Subsequently, on April 23, Lt. Gen. David D. McKiernan, Commander of Coalition Forces Land Component Command, delivered a letter to Al-Zubaidi warning him that he was misrepresenting himself, directing him to move out of the Palestine hotel, well away from Coalition forces, and cease his efforts to subvert the Coalition's restoration of services. Al-Zubaidi did not follow Lt. Gen. McKiernan's directive. He instead moved across the street into the Sheraton Hotel and continued his subversive actions.

The US said "Al Zubaidi's efforts to take political and personal advantage during this transitional period in Iraq's move to a representative government made it necessary for Coalition Forces to act decisively against him" and that the US "is committed to ensuring the Iraqi people have the freedom to establish a legitimate representative government, elected by all the citizens...Until such time as that government is formed, the Coalition is the only legitimate government authority in Iraq."

Meantime, an American team assigned to run Baghdad met with some Iraqi officials to hold talks on restoring back public services.

Bodine who presides over the American team met with the two chairperson of Baghdad's municipality chairman and ignored al-Zubaidi who declared himself as a chairman of the executive committee for running Baghdad.

Bodines' assistant Keith Sholoum told reporters that persons with whom Bodin had met are the ones who run the city, noting that the meeting was the first opportunity to discuss Baghdad's conditions.

Bodin also announced that Gen. Jay Garner will be meeting between 300- 400 Iraqi figures today, Monday, in order to discuss the future of the country. She added that the chairman of the Iraqi National Congress Ahmed Chalabi was invited to attend the meeting as well as the "higher council for the Islamic revolution in Iraq."

She expects the meeting to witness more representation in comparison with the first meeting with the Iraqi groups which was held in Nasiriyah recently.

She added that the meeting, which will be attended by the American presidential envoy Zalmai Khalil Zada, will not be also a political meeting, adding that it is an organizational meeting aiming at getting acquainted with the Iraqi leaders better.

Meantime, the Australian defense minister Robert Hill met in Baghdad yesterday with Gen. Garner and the two held talks on the situation in the post war phase.

An Australian military spokeswoman said that Hill toured in the area which will be the premises of the Australian armed forces in Baghdad and that he visited the headquarters of the Australian embassy which will be re-opened.

The spokeswoman added that Hill will visit the Australian forces in Iraq also.

Meanwhile, one American soldiers was killed and another wounded when two armored vehicles collided at an inspection point in the city of Takrit.

In Baghdad, four American soldiers were wounded, one is in a critical health condition in an attack, according to the central American leadership in Qatar, noting that preliminary information says that one Iraqi opened fire from a light weapon at the four soldiers after he had approached their car which was in the traffic jam and that the four soldiers were admitted to a military hospital, giving no further details.

Previous Stories:
  Rumsfeld on Iraqi developments   (4/26/2003)
  Wolfowitz on the latest developments on Iraq   (4/26/2003)
  U.S. announces financial coordinators for iraq reconstruction   (4/26/2003)

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