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file=/news/archive/2003/02/07/international1107EST0556.DTL
Iraq says sites mentioned by Powell already are under U.N. monitoring
CHARLES J. HANLEY, AP Special Correspondent
Friday, February 7, 2003
©2003 Associated Press
URL:
(02-07) 11:51 PST AL-AMIRIYAH, Iraq (AP) --
Iraqi officials on Friday took foreign journalists to missile assembly and test
sites spotlighted in Colin Powell's anti-Iraq U.N. presentation, to
underscore the fact that the installations have been under U.N. scrutiny
for months.
In Washington, a senior U.S. official dismissed the press tour. He said
Powell had made the point that Iraq hides what it is doing, making it
difficult for even experienced monitors to detect illicit activity.
The U.S. secretary of state alleged in his presentation Wednesday that the
facilities enable Iraq to "project power, to threaten."
The U.N. teams, in their regular updates, have not reported finding any
major violations of U.N. edicts banning weapons of mass destruction in Iraq
and restricting missiles to a 90-mile range.
"We've shown all kinds of cooperation with the inspectors, who have come
several times," said Ali Jassim, manager of the al-Rafah missile engine test
installation, in scrublands 25 miles southwest of Baghdad. "They found no
problem with it."
In his U.N. address, Powell revived a previous U.S. allegation that the
building of a larger al-Rafah test "stand" -- a concrete and steel structure
to hold and test engines - - signaled that Iraq would test engines for larger
missiles violating the U.N. limit.
But the U.N. missile experts have reported inspecting al-Rafah at least five
times since inspections resumed Nov. 27, have studied the specifications of
the new test stand, regularly monitor tests at the installation, and thus far
have reported no concerns.
The Iraqis say the new stand only will test permitted engines, and its
configuration relates to safety needs.
At the second site, a missile assembly installation, the director said of
Powell's statement about his facility, "It's only lies."
In Wednesday's presentation, seen by television audiences worldwide,
Powell displayed a satellite photo labeled "10 Nov 2002" showing a large
truck and missile and warhead canisters outside a workshop building at the
al-Musayyib site, 35 miles south of Baghdad.
Powell suggested this was a sign of Iraqi deception, two weeks before U.N.
inspections resumed in Iraq.
"Why would Iraq suddenly move equipment of this nature before
inspections?" he asked.
An incredulous site director, Karim Jabar Youssef, said such shipments of
parts and finished missiles were an everyday occurrence at the Rasheed
Co. site.
On Friday, a similar truck sat near the photographed location, along with
missiles, canisters and missile components, inside and outside the
workshop, waiting for transfer.
"On any day there would be constant activity, so any day Colin Powell can
claim there is intense activity here," Youssef said.
Besides, he noted, U.N. inspectors have visited al-Musayyib 10 times since
November. The short-range Fatah missiles there, legal under U.N.
resolutions, bore U.N. inventory stickers. Inspectors have not reported
any violations at the site.
Al-Rafah and the Rasheed site were just two of numerous Iraqi installations
said by Powell to pose threats, without his noting that U.N. teams have
them under close watch.
Another intelligence report also was under international criticism Friday.
London's Channel 4 News said a British government report purporting to
show how Iraq is deceiving U.N. weapons inspectors contained large
chunks lifted, without attribution, from old public sources, including an
article from Jane's Intelligence Review and one by an American university
lecturer. The British dossier was cited by Powell.
The British government said Friday it erred in not acknowledging that
sections of the document were based on work by Monterey, Calif.-based
researcher Ibrahim al- Marashi, Prime Minister Tony Blair's official
spokesman said.
©2003 Associated Press
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