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| Iraq |
| Iraqi general backs Syria charges |
| 2003-04-14 |
| EFL A top Iraqi general who switched sides during the war has backed Washington's claims that Syria has been giving refuge to members of Saddam Hussein's regime. General Ali al-Jajjawi - former Republican Guard commander in the northern city of Mosul - said Saddam's Baath Party deputy Izzat Ibrahim and other top figures had fled to Syria shortly before the city fell last Friday. Earlier, US President George W Bush warned Syria against harbouring fugitives from Saddam Hussein's entourage and urged Iraq's western neighbour to "co-operate" with the US-led coalition. A senior Syrian diplomat went on American TV on Sunday to deny his country was assisting Iraqi fugitives. "Who, us?" Imad Moustapha, the deputy ambassador in Washington, also rejected US claims that Syria was producing weapons of mass destruction (WMD) - the charge against Iraq which sparked the war there. "It's been a campaign of misinformation and disinformation about Syria since even before the war started - this is just an ongoing series of false accusations," Mr Moustapha told NBC news. "Lies, all lies!" On the WMD charge, Mr Moustapha said: "We will not only accept the most rigid inspection regime, we will welcome it heartily." As long as Blixi runs it. |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #3 Breaker one-nine....maintain radio silence...I believe we've got us a convoy! |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2003-04-14 13:33:01 |
| #2 More details from al-Bawaba: A senior Ba'ath Party member in Kirkuk said General Izzat Ibrahim al-Duri, one of Saddam Hussein's deputies, set off for Syria in a large convoy as the regime collapsed last week, the Daily Telegraph reported on Monday. Said Nazim Khoshid said Gen. al-Duri, who shortly before the war began was put in charge of the northern military region by Saddam, invited him to join his convoy. Khoshid told Kurdish officials that he declined the offer, and said he did not know whether Gen. al-Duri reached Syria. He believed he left in a convoy of two dozen Chevrolet four-wheel drive vehicles and took some US$30 million in US dollars with him. Two dozen Chevy 4x4s and $30M, how could you miss a convoy this big? |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-04-14 10:48:15 |
| #1 Yeah - and even if Blix does not run it, inspections without active government cooperation are worse than a waste of time, because the overly gullible amongst us adopt the "if you don't find anything, the inspections are working" line of reasoning. We'll be disproving that in due time, with our list of 3000 sites to inspect in Iraq. The best news here is we now have Iraqi sources who know all kinds of juicy stuff and are willing to talk - I'd imagine Syria and other governments in the region are getting a tad nervous, or should be. |
| Posted by: Jeff Brokaw 2003-04-14 09:01:16 |