Report: Intensive meetings for Iraqi opposition

The Kuwaiti daily al-Watan reported on Sunday, quoting Iraqi opposition sources in Tehran, that intensive contacts have been carried out between the opposition groups.

The groups had attended a meeting in London during November with British Foreign Office Secretary Derek Fatchett and the US Undersecretary of state Martin Indyk to establish united military forces that would carry out a plan to topple the Iraqi government in several stages.

The sources explained to the paper that the plan states that the opposition will topple the government through liberating cities in areas of southern Iraq where a provisional government is to be established. This government is to be recognized by several countries, at the top of which is the US, which pledged to finance this project until the end.

Iraqi opposition sources added that some 16 Iraqi opposition groups agreed during their meeting with the US and British officials to set up an army as a step on the road to toppling Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's government but under the condition that the US is to provide the needed financing for establishing this army.

The Kuwaiti paper added that "the Islamic Call" group has doubted the capability of this project to succeed after Iran refused to cooperate with the US to down Baghdad's government.

However, observers believe that appointing Muhammad Baqer Hakim, the chairman of the Higher Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, as a general commander for the troops of "Bader" contingent may have links to such developments, despite the fact that Baqer stressed to al-Watan that the Iraqi people are the ones who are entitled to make the change in Iraq.