Hashemi health deteriorate; Sultan Hashem protected, more army reserves summoned
A high ranking American official announced yesterday that the US occupation forces offered "immunit" to the Iraqi former minister of defense Sultan Hashem Ahmad who surrendered last week in the hope he will disclose important information on the activities of the toppled Iraqi president Saddam Hussein concerning armament.
The official added that the same immunity was given to "men of less importance who were technicians in the Iraqi weapons programs," and they are helping the former inspector at the UN, David Kay, who presides now over an American inspection team in his search for the Iraqi weapons.
The official said "we do not know what Sultan Hashem Ahmad will say, but his information about their ( Iraqis) current military capability is very important. I do believe that this is one reason which made ( the Americans) to agree to not to try him when he surrendered." This coincided with the announcement of the Pentagon that it might be obliged to deploy thousands of additional forces and reserves in Iraq -- in case not many countries vow shortly to send more troops to form a third international force in the country.
The US administration dedicated a sum of 20.3 billion dollars out of (USD 87 billion demanded from the Congress) for rebuilding Iraq. The document indicates a three- phase plan with each includes tens of steps aiming at helping Iraq stand back on its feet.
The document, for instance states to train an Iraqi army by the fall of October; programs to rebuild the army starting on December; transferring training gradually to the Iraqis will start by the fall of February.
According to the document, the Bush administration is planning to form a special force composed of Americans and Iraqis in order to protect the Iraqi oil industry that owns the ability to deploy units very rapidly in order to repair oil pipelines following "terrorist attacks." The administration also plans, according to the same document, to ensure "security personnel continuously for the Iraqi oil minister and the directors at the ministry."
Meantime, the spokesman for the interim Iraqi governing council presidetn Ahmed Chalabi, Intiqad Qanbar, announced that member of the council Aqila Hashemi who was hit on Saturday by several bullets during an assassination attempts on her life in Baghdad was still yesterday in "a bad condition," denying news which said on Tuesday that she was admitted to a US military hospital in Germany. Qanbar explained that her "health condition was deteriorated suddenly, doctors are doing all their best." Member of the council, Dara Nour Eddine, said earlier that Hashemi is "in a critical situation."