UN team begins search of Iraqi sites

The Iraqi news agency said the technical team had begun its first meeting with Iraqi officials, but gave no details.

Iraq’s UN Ambassador, Nizar Hamdoun, has said the team would work on defining the limits of the sites. “We want to make it clear to the secretary-general Kofi Annan that those sites are well-defined,” he said.

Meanwhile, the US sent morefighter aircraft including six F-117A stealth bombers in a bid to strengthen its forces in the gulf region.

A spokesman for the 49th fighter wing division at Holloman air force base in New Mexico said that radar-evading bombers left the base this morning for an undisclosed destination in the Gulf.

Earlier, US Ambassador to UN Bill Richardson, who was on a two-day visit to China, failed in his mission as the Chinese leadership offered no assurances on using veto in the Security Council to block the eventual strike on Baghdad.

Among the Gulf countries, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Palestine and Jordan and Turkey – all reiterated their opposition to military strike on Iraq and insisted on diplomatic route to resolve the crisis.

UAE Defence Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid al-Maktoum told the visiting US ambassador David Litt about his country’s decision to walk out of Washington-led alliance.

“For the sake of the innocent people, we say to America and its allies that we are not with you instriking Iraq as we know the dire consequences of this violence,” he said.

Amid the lingering crisis, Iraqi Vice-President Taha Yassin Ramadan said that his country wanted a diplomatic solution, the Iraqi news agency reported.

However, Iraq warned US that it would not give a walkover if Washington launched a strike and aimed to overthrow the government, said Ath-Thawra, the mouthpiece of ruling Bath party.

Meanwhile, as Washington readies its troops for battle, a likely outline of the Pentagon’s plan is emerging.

In the first round, the US, assisted by the UK, will mount 200 sorties a day, and fire cruise missiles, for four days. Washington and London will then give a brief respite to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to comply unconditionally with their demand that he must allow United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) inspectors unfettered access to any and every Iraqi site suspected of containing weapons of mass destruction or medium and long-range missiles.

If Saddam fails to do so, then the USaxis will launch another salvo of aerial bombardments combined with cruise missile attacks. Despite all the ballyhoo about taking out Saddam’s (still unproved) arsenal of chemical and biological arms with laser- guided tactical nuclear bombs, all the signs are that the US will hit the conventional targets in Iraq.