www.sundayherald.com/33080
The claims of Lieutenant General Amir al-Saadi given under no duress and with nothing to fear from Saddam's destroyed regime throws into disarray the active US and UK intelligence operation to discover the elusive smoking gun that would give international legitimacy for the war, and justification for ignoring the United Nations. The Iraqi general's statement also puts pressure on the newly formed team of US-led weapons inspectors who have been given the task the UN inspectors failed to deliver on, namely, to find weapons of mass destruction (WMD) inside Iraq. WiththeUN secretary-general Kofi Annan only last week demanding that UN arms inspectors be allowed back into Iraq to finish their work, the existence of the US team is further proof that President Bush intends to now sideline the UN. Al-Saadi, who is on the list of the US's 55 most wanted Iraqis, surrendered in Baghdad with the help of a German media crew, who filmed himleavinghisvillawithhis German wife. He presented himself to a US warrant officer and was escorted into military custody. Al-Saadi is said to have worked closely with the UN team headed by Dr Hans Blix. He spoke for the Iraqi government in news conferences betweentheresumptionof inspections in November and their endlastmonthwhentheUN removed its personnel due to the dangers of war. I was telling the truth, never told anything but the truth. Blix stated on Friday that he believed the war against Iraq was planned well in advance and raised doubts about both the UK and US attitudes towards weapons inspections. Through the lengthy run-up to conflictboththeUSandUK governments were clear that Iraq had WMD. Tony Blair told the Commons last September Iraq's WMDprogrammewasactive, detailed and growing. The US Secretary of State, Colin Powell,toldtheUNgeneral assembly in New York in February that US intelligence had compelling andconclusiveevidencethat Saddamhadamassedlethal stockpiles. With the regime collapsing and Iraqi military resistance crumbling, many had expected that, if Saddam's forces had WMD, they would be used. Despite scares and use of chemical war far suits by coalition forces, none have been used or located. Both the US and UK governments claimed that if only Iraqi scientists could be interviewed away from Iraqi government influence, then details of the programme would emerge. It was also anticipated that with the fall of the regime, coalition special forces would quickly find the WMD inside Iraq. One analyst inside the Ministry of Defence in London said yesterday: This claim by a senior Iraqi scientist now calls into question if this will happen at all. Aslawlessnessandlooting continued in Baghdad, with the humanitarian crisis not improving, the British-educated general said hedidnotknowofSaddam's whereabouts. Despite international criticism thatcoalitionforceshavenot planned for the peace role now being forced on them, Bush yesterday refused to accept US and UK forces were not coping. Warning of hardfightingstillahead,he describedIraqiciviliansas celebrating Saddam's downfall while dismissing the claims that lawlessness was a consequence of new-found freedom.
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