Post Card of Iraqi mother and child in Al-Amiriya Shelter
To view the post card of an Iraqi mother and child in the Al-Amiriya Shelter go to http://www.revolutioncenter.org/iraq/index.htm Thousands of these post cards are being sent from around the world to Kofi Annan with a statement pleading for an end to the sanctions. Very best, Mark
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 187
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 187 Friday, January 12, 2001 The daily Monitor is produced by the Mariam Appeal. Tel: 00 44 (0) 207 403 5200. Website: www.mariamappeal.com. __ MoD backtracks on cancer report: Advice on shells came from senior officers, ministry admits >From THE GUARDIAN, January 12th, 2001 Attempts by the Ministry of Defence to dismiss a leaked report highlighting increased risks from exposure to depleted uranium in shells backfired spectacularly yesterday when it emerged that not only was it written by an experience military officer but it was endorsed by senior officers. With defence ministers coming under renewed pressure to say what they knew of the health risks of depleted uranium (DU), officials first tried to discredit the report as the work of a 'trainee'. But the MoD admitted last night that the report had been written by an 'experienced officer'. It added: 'He was new to the post, with no experience of that particular area'. The report was then given more credence by a second internal MoD document. It emerged yesterday that the report - stressing long-term health risks from DU contamination - was attached to a covering letter from the office of the army's quartermaster general recommending its distribution to military and civilian personnel likely to come into contact with the armour-piercing shells. The letter was signed by a senior retired officer on behalf of the quartermaster general's chief of staff. Dated April 1997, it warns that on impact 'toxic and radioactive dust can be spread inside and outside of the [target] vehicle'. A further army document, dated August 1999, warns soldiers not to 'enter or climb a damaged hard target or loiter within 50 metres', adding: 'do not eat, drink, or smoke near the damaged vehicle. 'When an AFV [armoured vehicle] is penetrated by a DU round, the core becomes molten and may spread radioactive particles in the air.' In a letter to Geoffrey Hoon, the defence secretary, his shadow minister, Iain Duncan Smith, demanded to know if ministers were advised of the concerns about DU-tipped shells or told that the warnings were wrong. Menzies Campbell, the Liberal Democrat defence spokesman, said: 'The government's efforts to explain away documents relating to depleted uranium lacks credibility.' Faced with a growing prob lem of credibility, the MoD yesterday promised to publish the leaked documents with what it called a 'suitable commentary' as soon as possible. 'Whilst accurate in the main, they contain some significant errors of scientific fact,' it said. It referred to the warning in the 1997 document that uranium dust had been shown to increase the risks of developing lung, lymph and brain cancers. 'It has not,' the MoD said. Its chief scientific adviser, Sir Keith O'Nions, said the report contained 'many, many scientific errors' and did not form any part of the advice given to ministers. Mr Hoon told Channel 4 News last night that he had not seen the document before it was leaked. 'That document is not a document that was passed down the chain of command.' He added: 'What we are saying is that the risks are very small and have not led in any case that we have been able to establish by the best scientific evidence to any illness for any soldier.' John Spellar, the junior defence minister, infuriated Gulf war veterans earlier this week by announcing voluntary screening for Balkans veterans, without referring to them. Yet some 900,000 DU-tipped shells were fired in the Gulf, most by US aircraft, compared with 40,000 in the Balkans. The Guardian has found that defence ministers claimed in 1993 that the shells did not produce 'soluble depleted uranium'. The MoD now says the risk is more from soluble DU than insoluble radiated dust. The UN yesterday stepped up pressure for a survey of the areas hit by DU-tipped shells in Bosnia - and raised the prospect of a similar mission to Iraq - after traces of radioactivity and pieces of DU were found during a preliminary assessment of sites in Kosovo. Special report on DU at www.guardianunlimited.co.uk/ uranium _ Clinton says US pilot thought killed in Gulf War may be alive BOSTON, Jan 11 (AFP) - President Bill Clinton said in a radio interview Thursday that Washington has information that a US pilot shot down and presumed killed on the opening night of the 1991 Gulf War may be alive. "We've already begun working to try to determine whether, in fact, he's alive and if he is where he is and how we can get him out," Clinton told CBS News radio in an exclusive interview, warning: "I don't want to raise false hopes."
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 186
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 186 Thursday, January 11, 2001 The daily Monitor is produced by the Mariam Appeal. Tel: 00 44 (0) 207 403 5200. Website: www.mariamappeal.com. _ LONDON (AP) _ A British Army report warned almost four years ago that soldiers exposed to dust from depleted uranium shells might be at risk of developing cancers, according to a document carried by the British media on Thursday. The report, was prepared by the Headquarters of the Army"s Quartermaster-General as an internal document for military officials, said that soldiers doing salvage work inside vehicles which had been damaged by depleted uranium shells faced up to eight times the acceptable level of uranium exposure, according to the British Broadcasting Corp. and newspaper reports. The Ministry of Defense immediately countered that the document was a "discredited" draft paper, prepared by a trainee and never endorsed by senior staff. "Certain elements are scientifically incorrect or misleading," the Ministry of Defense said in a statement. The British government reiterated its position that medical evidence has so far failed to prove any link between the heavy metal, favored because of its ability to penetrate armor, and soldiers being diagnosed with cancer after coming into contact with the munitions. The statement reflected comments made earlier in the day by NATO Secretary-General Lord Robertson, who told reporters in Brussels that there was no scientific evidence that exposure to armor-piercing munitions containing depleted uranium posed a significant health risk. Nevertheless, he said NATO has set up an action plan because of European countries" fears about health risks to soldiers assigned to the Balkans, where depleted uranium munitions were used in combat. But the document, which all the news organization said had been leaked to them, still threatened to inflame fears already sweeping across Europe that soldiers" lives had been put at risk in Bosnia and Kosovo, as well as in the Gulf War. Depleted uranium munitions were used in all of those wars. Last month, Italy began studying the illnesses of 30 Balkans veterans, seven of whom died of cancer, including five cases of leukemia. In France, four soldiers are being treated for leukemia. Several European countries have begun screening soldiers who served as peacekeepers in the Balkans. Many civilian aid agencies are doing the same. Britain on Tuesday bowed to pressure and said it would offer screening to veterans of the Kosovo and Bosnian wars for signs of illness. According to published excerpts of the leaked Ministry of Defense report, the army warned in 1997 that the risk of exposure to the "hazardous" uranium dust "must be reduced." "Inhalation of insoluble uranium dioxide dust will lead to accumulation in the lungs with very slow clearance _ if any," the British media quoted the document as saying. "Although the chemical toxicity is low, there may be localized radiation damage of the lung leading to cancer." The opposition Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats called on government officials to explain the report"s findings. Britain dismisses own report backing uranium risk LONDON, Jan 11 (Reuters) - An internal British Defence Ministry report warned four years ago that exposure to ammunition coated with depleted uranium increased the risk of cancer, British media said on Thursday. A Ministry of Defence (MoD) spokesman confirmed a report was prepared on the subject but said it was flawed, written by a trainee and never endorsed in any way. However the mere existence of the report added fuel to a debate in Britain and elsewhere about the safety of depleted uranium (DU) ammunition used by British, U.S. and other western armies in the Gulf and Balkan wars. NATO promised on Wednesday to investigate the effects of DU used in tank-busting ammunition, but insisted it posed a minimal health risk. As more countries stepped up screening of war veterans who may have been exposed to the munitions" mildly radioactive residue, NATO said it would do all it could to reassure troops and civilians worried by recent cancer scares. NATO ambassadors agreed a "robust" action plan to look into the effects of using DU in weapons which have been linked to dozens of cases of leukaemia among Western peacekeepers who served in the Balkan conflicts. Details of the 1997 British report were splashed on the front pages of the Guardian and Independent newspapers under headlines like "MoD knew shells were cancer risk." "The warnings, in an internal MoD document are in marked contrast to persistent public assurances -- repeated by the Armed Forces Minister John Spellar to parliament on Tuesday -- playing down the risk of DU," the Guardian said. The army medical report said inhalation of dust from DU
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 185
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 185 Wednesday, January 10, 2001 The daily Monitor is produced by the Mariam Appeal. Tel: 00 44 (0) 207 403 5200. Website: www.mariamappeal.com. Students against war in Iraq fire the mother of all tomatoes The Independent, 10 January 2001 The tomato wasn't sun-dried, it wasn't Tuscan and it certainly wasn't on the vine. But when a protester threw it at Tony Blair on a visit to Bristol yesterday, the offending fruit looked as if it had been preparing for the moment all of its life. Soft and overripe, if not quite rotten, the humble British tom was hurled at the Prime Minister by one of a group of students protesting against British sanctions on Iraq. In a clear breach of Mr Blair's personal no-fly zone, the Mother of All Tomatoes executed a perfect arc before landing with a splat on the back of his checked suit. Onlookers had visions of Alastair Campbell, Mr Blair's official spokesman, diving through the air like a presidential bodyguard to catch the splat himself. But even the quick-witted spin-doctor was taken by surprise when his boss arrived to open a new further education college in the city amid jeers and heckles from about 70 protesters. Worse still for this notoriously non-stick premier, the tomato managed to cling grimly to its target. For a few agonising seconds, Teflon Tony was no more. As a clutch of special branch and local officers leapt into the crowd, Mr Blair's scowl seemed to say: "I paid the tax, so where were the police?" A man wearing, appropriately enough, a bomber jacket was bundled away. After the college opening, an unflappable Mr Blair was chauffeured across town to Bristol City Council's headquarters to give a speech on the differences between the Government and the Tories. More than 200 teachers, nurses, schoolchildren and business people listened to his new catchphrase, that it was "choice, not chance" that had seen Britain's economy and public services blossom under Labour. Just to make sure that his audience got the message, Mr Blair used the phrase "choice not chance" no fewer than seven times in a speech that contrasted Labour's record and pledges with Tory plans to privatise and cut investment. Crucially, the Prime Minister admitted repeatedly that although progress had been made "in every area," a lot more remained to be done to improve public services. "It is all for one big overarching national purpose: to build a Britain in which prosperity spreads to every corner of the land, every party of every city, every family and child," he said. "Prosperity for all: that is the purpose and radical change and investment over the next five years is what will achieve it. It won't happen by chance, but the choices we as a nation make." After his speech, Mr Blair embarked on a question-and-answer session with the invited audience, which allowed him to reject renationalisation of the railways - his train arrived 11 minutes late - rule out drug legalisation and promise more help for the homeless. The Prime Minister said that it would be a "hard slog" to get the rail service up to standard, but "it is no secret" that French and German railways were better than Britain's because of years of investment. In a reference to his pro-Iraqi hecklers, he also gave one questioner a stout defence of Britain's no-fly zone in southern Iraq. Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait was "an act of absolute barbarity," he said, promising that the UK would continue to "contain him". Clearly relishing the campaign trail, Mr Blair ended with a warning that Tory cynicism and voter apathy was "the biggest danger of all". In his clearest hint yet that the general election is nearly upon us, he said: "Your choice is there, make that choice and let's decide the future of this country." As he left, a tell-tale tomato stain was clearly visible on the back of his suit jacket. __ India hopes to buy 1 mt crude from Iraq >From THE TIMES OF INDIA, January 10th, 2001 NEW DELHI: India is hopeful that the U.N. Sanctions Committee will agree to its plea for purchase of an additional one million tons of crude oil from Iraq under the food-for-oil programme. The committee last month gave its approval for India to receive 1.5 million tons of crude in exchange for wheat, rice and tea, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Ram Naik said on the sidelines of the 4th International Petroleum Conference and Exhibition he inaugurated on Tuesday. "We hope to receive the U.N. Sanctions Committee approval for an additional one million ton crude from Iraq during this fiscal in addition to the 1.5 million tons of crude already approved in December," he said, adding the crude would be priced below current international prices. On the agreement signed with Iraq for the supply of crude on a long-term fixed rate basis, Naik said while the "the in principal agreeme
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 184
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 184 Tuesday, January 9, 2001 The daily Monitor is produced by the Mariam Appeal. Tel: 00 44 (0) 207 403 5200. Website: www.mariamappeal.com. ___ BRUSSELS (Reuters) - NATO came under pressure on Tuesday to set aside political differences and face up to growing European concerns of a possible link between uranium tipped bombs and cases of cancer among Western peacekeepers. Controversy has erupted over the alliance"s use in the Balkans of armor-piercing shells tipped with depleted uranium although health experts have cast doubt on links to blood cancer among soldiers. Depleted uranium (DU) is used in missiles, shells and bullets to increase heavy armor penetration. Defense experts say it can be pulverized on impact into a radioactive dust. Political advisers at both NATO and the European Union met separately to discuss the issue. NATO appears split between those, like Britain and the United States, who argue there is no health risk from DU weaponry and others -- including Germany, Italy, Portugal and Belgium -- who want a full NATO inquiry. U.S. attack jets fired 31,000 rounds of DU ammunition against Serb targets during NATO"s 1999 campaign to drive the Yugoslav army out of Kosovo. Some 10,000 rounds were also fired in neighboring Bosnia in 1994-95. The controversy echoes the long-running row which followed the West"s use of DU munitions in the Gulf War that resulted in thousands of Iraqi civilian deaths, the birth of deformed babies and claims of "Gulf War Syndrome" among soldiers. GROWING LIST OF VETERAN CASUALTIES Italy, Belgium, Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands have reported deaths from cancer among soldiers who served in the Balkans. Many others have fallen ill, prompting widespread calls for increased medical screening and alliance-wide research. But NATO has insisted there is no known link between the depleted uranium arms and illness among troops. "There"s absolutely no proof that there"s a connection," Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said Monday. World Health Organization experts in Geneva doubted that DU weapons had caused leukemia, a potentially fatal blood cancer, among troops sent to the Balkans. WHO experts said studies in Kosovo hospitals had so far shown no rise in average levels of leukemia among the largely Albanian civilian population of the Serbian province. But they warned that children playing in former conflict areas where the weapons had exploded could be at risk and recommended that soldiers who had taken home depleted uranium shell parts as souvenirs should dispose of them. The Royal Society of leading British scientists has said it plans to study the safety and health effects of depleted uranium in weapons used by NATO in the Balkans. NO RUSSIAN CASES, BUT SCREENING STEPPED UP Russian defense officials were quoted Tuesday as saying Moscow had so far found no peacekeepers ill with leukemia due to DU from NATO weapons used in Kosovo. Russia has around 4,000 troops in Kosovo and Bosnia. But Moscow insisted an international inquiry was the only way to check claims of so-called "Balkans Syndrome." The RIA news agency quoted Lieutenant-General Nikolai Staskov, first deputy head of Russia"s paratroop forces, as saying some 10,000 servicemen who had served in the former Yugoslavia would be examined in Russia. In London, a Defense Ministry spokesman denied media reports that Britain planned to screen war veterans. An official said later that the government would make a statement on depleted uranium at 1530 GMT. Defense experts said it was time to clear the air and urged NATO to agree on research into any possible health risks. "I think NATO should lead from the front," said British military analyst Paul Beaver, spokesman for Jane"s Weekly. "There is no doubt in my mind -- there has to be an alliance-wide epidemiological survey," he told Reuters. "This is not just military and medical, this is political. Bruce George, chairman of the British parliament"s influential defense select committee, told BBC Radio: "It is vitally important that all the major countries who are going to examine their forces do so with a common methodology. "It would be ludicrous if one group of people -- the Portuguese -- embarked on one approach and the Americans and British had different approaches." Former army engineer Kevin Rudland, the first British ex-serviceman to say contact with DU dust in the Balkans had caused him to suffer a related illness, said it was scandalous that the authorities were dragging their feet. "There are so many people in the same boat as me. I think they should sort this out once and for all," he said. _ Qatari gift of Boeing 747 makes successful maiden flight in Iraq BAGHDAD, Jan 9 (AFP) - A US-made Boeing 747 aircraft donated by a member of Qatar's ruling family in
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 183
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 183 Monday, January 8, 2000 The daily Monitor is produced by the Mariam Appeal. Tel: 00 44 (0) 207 403 5200. Website: www.mariamappeal.com. ___ The truth about depleted uranium >From The Independent January 8th, 2001 Robert Fisk JUST FOURTEEN months ago, on a bleak, frosty afternoon, I stopped my car beside an old Ottoman bridge in southern Kosovo. It was here, scarcely half a year earlier, that Nato jets had bombed a convoy of Albanian refugees, ripping scores of them to pieces in the surrounding fields. Their jets, I knew, had been firing depleted uranium rounds. And now, on the very spot east of Djakovica where a bomb had torn apart an entire refugee family in a tractor, five Italian Kfor soldiers had built a little checkpoint. Indeed, their armoured vehicle was actually standing on part of the crater in the road. I tried to warn them that I thought the crater might be contaminated. I told them about depleted uranium and the cancers that had blossomed among the children of Iraq who had - or whose parents had - been close to DU explosions. One of the young soldiers laughed at me. He'd heard the stories, he said. But Nato had assured its troops that there was no danger from depleted uranium. I begged to differ. "Don't worry about us," the soldier replied. They should have known better. Only a few weeks earlier, a team of UN scientists - sent to Kosovo under the set of UN resolutions that brought Kfor into the province - had demanded to know from Nato the location of DU bombings in Kosovo. Nato refused to tell them. Nor was I surprised. From the very start of the alliance bombing campaign against Serbia, Nato had lied about depleted uranium. Just as the American and British governments still lie about its effects in southern Iraq during the 1991 Gulf War. US and British tanks had fired hundreds of rounds - thousands in the case of the Americans - at Iraqi vehicles, using shells whose depleted uranium punches through heavy armour and then releases an irradiated aerosol spray. In the aftermath of that war, I revisited the old battlefields around the Iraqi city of Basra. Each time, I came across terrifying new cancers among those who lived there. Babies were being born with no arms or no noses or no eyes. Children were bleeding internally or suddenly developing grotesque tumours. UN sanctions, needless to say, were delaying medicines from reaching these poor wretches. Then I found Iraqi soldiers who seemed to be dying of the same "Gulf War syndrome" that was already being identified among thousands of US and British troops. At the time, The Independent was alone in publicising this sinister new weapon and its apparent effects. Government ministers laughed the reports off. One replied to Independent readers who drew the Ministry of Defence's attention to my articles that, despite my investigations, he had seen no "epidemiological data" proving them true. And of course there was none. Because the World Health Organisation, invited by Iraq to start research into the cancers, was dissuaded from doing so even though it had sent an initial team to Baghdad to start work. And because a group of Royal Society scientists told by the British authorities to investigate the effects of DU declined to visit Iraq. Documents that proved the contrary were dismissed as "anecdotal". A US military report detailing the health risks of DU and urging suppression of this information was dutifully ignored. When two years ago I wrote about a British government report detailing the extraordinary lengths to which the authorities went at DU shell test-firing ranges in the UK - the shells are fired into a tunnel in Cumbria and the resulting dust sealed into concrete containers which are buried - I know for a fact that the first reaction from one civil servant was to ask whether I might be prosecuted for revealing this. One ex-serviceman, sick since the Gulf War, actually had his house raided by the British police in an attempt to track down "secret" documents. More honourable policemen might have searched for papers that proved DU's dangers - and which might form the basis of manslaughter charges against senior officers. But of course the police were trying to find the source of the leak, not the source of dying men's cancers. During the Kosovo war, I travelled from Belgrade to Brussels to ask about Nato's use of depleted uranium. Luftwaffe General Jerz informed me that it was "harmless" and was found in trees, earth and mountains. It was a lie. Only uranium - not the depleted variety that comes from nuclear waste - is found in the earth. James Shea, Nato's spokesman, quoted a Rand Corporation report that supposedly proved DU was not harmful, knowing full well - since Mr Shea is a careful reader and not a stupid man - that the Rand report deals with dust in uranium mines, not the i
Join the book campaign for Iraq and help Iraq defeat the intellectual embargo being inflicted upon them
Forwarded from The Rebuilding of Baghdad Library Campaign. There are addresses in the US and UK to which you can send books that will be forwarded to Jordan for shipping into Iraq. Also below is information for how you can make a financial donation which can be used to purchase much needed books. If you want to receive a list of books especially wanted e-mail back to me. Dear Sir/Madame Join The Rebuilding of Baghdad Library Campaign. The National Mobilization Committee for the Defense of Iraq (NMCDI) in Jordan has initiated an academic book collection Campaign for Iraq. The goal of this campaign, which has been dubbed "the rebuilding of the Baghdad Library", is to provide Iraqi students, academics and intellectuals with scientific and academic books and references that have been prohibited entry to Iraq for the past ten years. The excuse used is that these items are considered to be "double usage items". Thus Iraqi's have been denied the right to learn which is and internationally recognized and protected right. NMCDI, which has initiated this campaign, is a Jordanian popular committee that includes political parties, many civil society institutions, unions, organizations and independent personalities. This committee was established for the sole aim of raising local, regional and international public opinion regarding the need to lift the comprehensive economic sanctions that have been imposed on Iraq for since 1990. The NMCDI believes that the sanctions, which according to he UN have directly resulted in the death of at least 1.5 million Iraqi civilians and have caused a near total breakdown in the economic, social, educational and health sectors are a crimes against humanity. The book campaign is an attempt among many serious attempts carried out by the NMCDI to challenge the sanctions that have crippled a nation of 22 million. We believe that we can succeed in bringing people from all over the world together in unison to stop this atrocity which has denied ordinary Iraqis from the right to live learn and develop. Politics aside, we simply believe that it is immoral to deny 22 million Iraqis the gift of knowledge. Iraq's historical legacy is that it is the cradle of civilization and it gave humanity the first form of script and the first legal doctrines. In our time, Iraq was able was able to offer free education from kindergarten through university. However, after the destruction of the Iraqi economy as a result of the sanctions and the severe UN restrictions imposed on Iraq , its legacy and achievements have been reduced to day to day survival. The NMCDI has already announced this campaign in Jordan and work has begun in the book collection plan. However, to achieve our set goals, and to make this ambitious campaign a global effort, the NMCDI will be working with the Mariam Appeal organization based in London and led by British MP George Galloway. Information about the campaign can also be found on the Mariam Appeal Web Site: www.mariamappeal.com Our major goal is to collect and forward to Iraq the 8000 academic and scientific references needed by Iraqi universities and academic institutions, in an effort to replenish the their empty libraries. Therefore, our committee is contacting as many institutions, organizations and individuals as possible to participate in our campaign. With this letter we would like to officially invite you, your organization, your company to participate in this humanitarian campaign and help give back to Iraqis the gift of knowledge. If you choose to contribute to our campaign, please send us a return email choosing one or more of the following options for participation: * I agree to purchase one or more of the needed books, periodicals, CD's and forward to your address. *I wish to contribute money to your campaign to go towards the purchase of one or more books, periodicals, etc. * I wish to participate by organizing my mini book campaign in my area to collect academic references to forward to Iraq through your campaign Once we receive a return email from you stating your selected contribution, we will contact you immediately with the necessary details. Please feel free to contact us at any time to answer any questions or respond to any comments you may have. Our aim to succeed in our goals and we know that together we can make a difference in making our world a better place. Contact person: Mr. Fawaz Zuriekat National Mobilization Committee for the Defense of Iraq International laison/ Rebuilding Baghdad Library Campaign Tel: 962-6-5533166 Fax: 962-6-5533177 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Best regards Fawaz Zuriekat Courrier Company addresses in US and UK (USA) Mr. Fawaz Zureikat International Book Campaign MEASI Aramex International Courier NY 165-15, 145th Drive Jamaica NY Jamaica, NY 11434-5135 Tel : +1-718-553-8740 Fax : +1-718-553-8953 Contact Person : Haitham Ajlouni/Station Manager / E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTE
2ND NATIONAL ORGANIZING CONFERENCE ON IRAQ
Conference link: http://www.ccmep.org/Conference/conference.html 2ND NATIONAL ORGANIZING CONFERENCE ON IRAQ Denver, CO FEBRUARY 17-18, 2001 Please start talking within your group about sending one or more representative for this working conference/meeting where we will: 1) Create a structure for a national network of groups that will work together to end sanction 2) Plan (a) national action(s) All are welcome and encouraged to participate- participants are asked to submit proposals for national structures and actions by January 29. A website for registration and directions for proposal submission will be added to http://www.ccmep.org/Conference/conference.html If you would like to join one of the three working groups planning the conference, 1) outreach, 2) agenda, and/or 3) logistics, please contact Mark Schneider at 303-296-3975 or [EMAIL PROTECTED], or look on the website for contact information for co-point persons for each working group. So far 40 groups have signed on- check the conference website for an updated list of participating groups http://www.ccmep.org/Conference/conference.html ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!! LET'S ORGANIZE TO END THE SANCTIONS AGAINST IRAQ
Iraq Sanctions Challenge to travel Jan 12
International Action Center 39 West 14th Street, NY, NY 10011 212-633-6646 fax: 212-633-2889 [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.iacenter.org Founder Ramsey Clark, former U.S. Attorney General January 4, 2001 For Immediate release Press Contact: Deirdre Sinnott 212-633-6646 RAMSEY CLARK'S SANCTIONS CHALLENGE IV: DELEGATION SET TO DEFY U.S. POLICY ARRIVES IN AMMAN ON THE WAY TO BAGHDAD, SAT. JANUARY13, 2001 Defying U.S./UN sanctions, a group of over 50 delegates led byformer U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark will depart from the United States for the Middle East on Jan. 12 and leave fromAmman, Jordan to Baghdad, Iraq on Jan. 13. The delegation from the U.S. plans to arrive in Iraq to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the U.S.-led Gulf War. This is the fourth Iraq Sanctions Challenge by Clark's International Action Center. The 50 delegates include anti-war and anti- sanctions activists, educators, students and members of religious groups. They will defy U.S./UN imposed sanctions by taking supplies to Iraq without licence. More than 1 million Iraqi people, mostly children and seniors, have died as a result of 10 years of U.S./UN sanctions. The delegates plan to fly on Royal Jordanian Airlines directly to Baghdad. In recent months people from many countries, including UN Security Council countries Russia, Britian and France, Spain, Greece and many Middle East nations, have defied the U.S./British illegal ban on flights to Iraq. Clark is known throughout the U.S. and the Middle East for his ground-breaking work in the last 10 years of fighting the sanctions against Iraq and for his overall solidarity with Middle Eastern people against oppression from the U.S. After visiting Iraq, delegates plan to visit a Palestinian refugee camp in Amman, Jordan and then deliver medicines to the West Bank in solidarity with the uprising against Israeli occupation. The trip is sponsored by the International Action Center. "We know that the amount of humanitarian aid we bring cannot truly meet the needs of the Iraqi people," said delegate Sara Flounders, a co-director of the IAC. "Only ending the sanctions and allowing Iraq to resume normal trade relations can bring an end to the country's catastrophic economic situation. "On Dec. 20, in one of his first statements as George W. Bush's secretary of state nominee, Gen. Colin Powell threatened tighter sanctions and increased aggression against Iraq. Powell headed the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Bush's father and commanded U.S. forces during the 1991 Gulf War. "This demonstrates the great urgency for anti-war and anti- sanctions forces to stand up and mobilize right now," Flounders commented. "We must send a strong message to the incoming Bush administration that we won't tolerate further aggression against the Iraqi people. "Jan. 16-17 is the tenth anniversary of the start of one of the worst massacres in history," Flounders continued. "More than 100,000 Iraqis were killed while the United States lost about 141 personnel in the Gulf War. The U.S. used an integrated strategy of massive bombing, more than 110,000 aerial sorties in 42 days, and tight economic sanctions in an effort to permanently weaken Iraq. Washington's goal has always been to return Iraq to semi-colonial bondage so that U.S. oil companies and banks can dominate its vast oil resources." Flounders said that the IAC is urging anti-sanctions activists to turn out en masse for the Jan. 20 counter-inaugural protest in Washington with signs and banners demanding an end to sanctions and to all U.S. aggression. Groups participating in the Iraq Sanctions Challenge include International Peace Project, Fellowship of Reconsilation, Student for Unity Portland State University, Veterans for Peace, Shifa International, Committee in Support of the Iraqi People, Fight Israeli State Terrorism (FIST), American Muslims for Global Peace & Justice, Canadian Islamic Congress, Al Awda, Bard Student Action Collective, Northhampton Committee to Lift the Sanctions, Staten Island College Voice, Pax Christi, Arab Cultural Assoication of Japan, Rocky Mountain Peace & Justice Center and the American Muslim Council. Almost half the delegates are students and educators representing colleges and universities across the U.S. For updates on the Iraq Sanctions Challenge or for information on planned protests, visit the Web site www.iacenter.org or call (212) 633-6646. International Action Center 39 West 14th Street, Room 206 New York, NY 10011 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] web: http://www.iacenter.org CHECK OUT SITE http://www.mumia2000.org phone: 212 633-6646 fax: 212 633-2889 *To make a tax-deductible donation, go tohttp://www.peoplesrightsfund.org
Fears Grow About Depleted Uranium
Fears Grow About Depleted Uranium by JEFFREY ULBRICH Associated Press Writer BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) -- European governments are disturbed. Some of their soldiers are falling sick and dying, and they don't know why. Every day the question grows louder: Can the armor-piercing munitions made of depleted uranium that NATO used in Kosovo be causing cancer? There is no answer. Nobody has made the connection scientifically. Certainly not NATO. The United States, the only NATO ally to use depleted uranium weapons during the 78-day air campaign against Yugoslavia in 1999, insisted again Thursday that the munitions pose no health threat. In Washington, the Pentagon said it is aware of the concerns being raised by some allies. ''We share those concerns,'' said Lt. Col. Paul Phillips. He said the United States has conducted many studies on depleted uranium, particularly since the 1991 Gulf War when the weapons were first used. ''In each study, we've come away convinced that the use of depleted uranium munitions does not present significant or residual environmental or health risks,'' Phillips said. NATO spokeswoman Simone de Manso in Brussels, said: ''According to our knowledge from independent research ... there is no study that can prove a direct link between certain types of diseases of which people are now afraid and contact with depleted uranium.'' His remarks echoed those of the NATO-led peacekeeping force in Bosnia, SFOR. It said in a statement Wednesday that research has shown ''there is a negligible hazard'' from the ammunition. ''SFOR doesn't believe that either the troops serving within SFOR today or the civilian population in Bosnia are at risk,'' the statement said. The reassurances haven't calmed jittery Europeans, and Thursday the 15-nation European Union added its voice. ''There will be an informal inquiry,'' said EU spokesman Jonathan Faull. He said it was too soon to say if soldiers who served in the Balkans under NATO were suffering from illnesses as a result of contact with depleted uranium. ''What we know is that community citizens have been affected.'' Romano Prodi, president of the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, said the EU ''needs to know the truth.'' ''If there exists the slightest risk, then these weapons should be abolished immediately,'' Prodi told Italian radio. A year ago, NATO Secretary-General Lord Robertson confirmed that American jets had fired about 31,000 depleted uranium rounds at Yugoslav armored vehicles in Kosovo. The U.N. Environment Program is expected to release a report on the subject next month. And the subject will be discussed at NATO's regular weekly political committee Tuesday. Italy launched an investigation last week into a possible link between depleted uranium munitions and about 30 cases of serious illness involving soldiers who served in missions Kosovo and earlier in Bosnia, 12 of whom developed cancer. Five of the soldiers have died of leukemia. And France said Thursday that four French soldiers who served in the Balkans during the 1999 bombing campaign are being treated for leukemia. Spain, Portugal, Finland, Belgium, Greece, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic and Turkey announced plans to screen peacekeepers. Some don't believe the screening is worth the effort. Wendla Paile of the Finnish Center for Radiation and Nuclear Safety in Helsinki said such screening was ''pointless.'' ''The radiation from uranium depleted ammunition is so little that it could not explain these extra cases (of leukemia),'' Paile said. Paul Beaver, an analyst at Janes Defense Weekly, said the countries screening their troops have no idea what to look for. ''The problem is there hasn't been any re
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 181
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 181 Thursday, January 4, 2001 Italy blames army deaths on US shells >From THE GUARDIAN, January 4th, 2001 Concern about the use of depleted uranium shells by US forces intensified yesterday when Italy asked Nato to investigate claims that six of its soldiers who died after serving in the Balkans were killed by exposure to the munitions. The request came after an official investigations by France, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, the Netherlands and Finland into the effect of DU weapons. The Italian prime minister, Giuliano Amato, told the newspaper La Repubblica that alarm about the `Balkan syndrome' was `more than legitimate'. `We've always known that [depleted uranium] was used in Kosovo, but not in Bosnia. We've always known that it was a danger only in absolutely exceptional circumstances like, for example, picking up a fragment with a hand on which there was an open wound, while in normal circumstances it isn't dangerous at all. But now we're starting to have a justified fear that things aren't that simple.' His defence minister, Sergio Mattarella, said Nato had told Rome only last month that DU had also been used in Bosnia. US GBP10 aircraft fired more than 31,000 rounds of DU ammunition in Kosovo. More than 14,000 rounds fell in the area of Kosovo now controlled by Italian troops, according to Italian the deputy ecology minister, Valerio Calzolaio. DU is a by-product of converting natural uranium into the enriched form used in nuclear weapons and reactors. It is about 40% less radioactive than natural uranium. The US fired more than 850,000 rounds during the 1991 Gulf war. This has been linked to birth defects in Iraq. The six Italians who have died since returning from the Balkans all had leukaemia. The latest was Salvatore Carbonaro, 24, from Sicily, who died in November after serving twice in Bosnia but never in Kosovo. Doctors have said there is insufficient evidence to link the deaths to exposure to DU shells but the Italian media say the number of deaths is too high to be coincidental. A group representing their families has released a copy of a document in English which it said was a list of Nato guidelines for dealing with DU. It said the document, dated November 22 1999, was not distributed to troops before that date, although soldiers had by then spent months peacekeeping in Kosovo. Last month the British armed forces minister, John Spellar, admitted that advice on the potential dangerof DU shells failed to reach British troops in the Gulf war. The Ministry of Defence said yesterday it was not planning to review the effect of DU weapons in the Balkans. It said the radioactivity from the shells was no higher than from household appliances. The US agency for toxic substances and disease registry had said that no human cancer of any type has ever been seen as a result of exposure to natural or depleted uranium'. Nato sources said yesterday that the North Atlantic Council would discuss the issue at its regular meeting next week. ___ `It is an outrage that you repeat fabricated disinformation' >From THE GUARDIAN, January 4th, 2001 As the Bush administration prepares for power, the UN policy of sanctions against Baghdad, introduced 10 years ago, must be one of the first areas to claim its attention. A former senior UN official writes an open letter to Britain's minister with responsibility for Iraq, Peter Hain, a leading voice in defence of a policy now widely seen as ineffective and immoral December 17 2000 was the first anniversary of UN Resolution 1284, which was offered by the security council as a step towards resolving outstanding disarmament and arms-monitoring issues as a precondition for the suspension of comprehensive economic sanctions against Iraq. As many feared, including myself, this resolution was a still-born creation [for which] the people of Iraq continue to pay dearly, and daily. The European public is increasingly unwilling to accept such a policy. There is deep concern, because of the suffering of innocent civilians and the irrefutable evidence of violations of international law by the security council. Without a transparent political agenda . . . I do not see an end to this costly human tragedy. Your speech of November 7 at Chatham House has not helped. Let me single out your main points: `Our air crews risk their lives patrolling the skies above southern Iraq.' The public does not know that you do this without a mandate from the security council. It is in your hands to stop endangering your pilots by withdrawing them. It angered your office that I introduced reporting of air strikes for 1999. I did so as the UN secretary general's official for security, because of the dangers [faced by] UN observers on the roads of Iraq. The report showed that out of 132 [air strikes], UN staff witnessed 28. The public does not know that in the `no-fly zones' you establishe
A Public Forum Marking Ten Years of Sanctions and War Against the People of Iraq Thursday, January 18, 7pm in Washington, DC
10 YEARS IS ENOUGH! A Public Forum Marking Ten Years of Sanctions and War Against the People of Iraq Thursday, January 18, 7pm St. Aloysius Parish 19 I Street, NW (at North Capitol Street) Washington, DC Panelists Include: George Galloway, British Member of Parliament and founder of the Mariam Appeal See www.mariamappeal.com Mariam is currently being hosted by the Bruderhof Communities and Dr. Ali Aboosi in Pennsylvania. It is expected that Mariam will be present at this event. Phyllis Bennis, author Calling the Shots: How Washington Dominates Today's UN, and fellow, Institute for Policy Studies (to be confirmed) Rania Masri, Ph.D, Iraq Action Coalition Rima Meroueh, National Mobilization to End the Sanctions Against Iraq Anthony Arnove, editor Iraq Under Siege, member International Socialist Organization Sponsors (list in formation): National Mobilization to End the Sanctions Against Iraq, Middle East Research and Information Project, International Socialist Organization, Justice Action Coalition. Contact Bruce (240) 355-4608 or e-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] for more information.
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 180
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 180 Tuesday, January 2, 2001 Saddam shrugs off Arab rebuke IRAQ condemned yesterday as "silly and boring" an appeal by other Gulf Arab states that Baghdad comply with United Nations resolutions demanding the elimination of its weapons of mass destruction. The call by the six-member Gulf Co-operation Council coincided with the biggest military parade in Baghdad since the 1991 Gulf War. It was directed by President Saddam Hussein, who greeted the marching units on Sunday by firing shots from a rifle. An Iraqi opposition group later claimed that hours after the parade Saddam had suffered a "severe stroke" and was taken to hospital. Rumours that Saddam, 63, is in poor health have circulated before, but have proved impossible to confirm. The four-hour demonstration of military muscle, called the al-Aqsa Parade, was intended as a show of support for the Palestinians in their uprising against Israeli occupation and capped a month-long training campaign called by Saddam for "volunteers willing to launch jihad to liberate Palestine". It also served as a potent reminder of the durability of the Iraqi leader, ahead of the tenth anniversary of the Gulf War later this month. Saddam struck an identical pose in November at a parade in Baghdad by nearly two million Iraqis volunteering to fight with the Palestinians. The communique, issued by the Gulf Co-operation Council, was softer in tone than other statements in the past decade, representing a compromise between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, which had wanted to maintain the United Nations sanctions until Iraq obeyed all resolutions, and the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, which called for their end. ___ Republicans to block war crimes treaty REPUBLICANS in Congress are vowing to reverse President Clinton's last-minute decision to sign a United Nations treaty establishing the first permanent international court for war crimes. Jesse Helms, the powerful chairman of the Senate foreign relations committee, said that he planned to introduce legislation in the congressional session starting next week to bar US co-operation with the proposed international criminal court. "The decision will not stand," Mr Helms said. "I will make reversing this decision, and protecting American men and women in uniform from the jurisdiction of this kangaroo court, one of my highest priorities in the new Congress." Donald Rumsfeld, George W. Bush's choice for Defence Secretary, is already on record as opposing the new court. In a letter with 11 other prominent former policymakers last month, he gave warning that "American leadership in the world could be the first casualty" of the proposed tribunal. The United States refused to join the 120 nations that signed the treaty in Rome in 1998 calling for the creation of an international criminal court because of fears that American soldiers could be unfairly targeted. With the court expected to come into existence anyway once 60 nations have ratified the treaty in about two years' time, Washington faced a year-end deadline to sign or to lose its influence in future negotiations. President Clinton suggested that the US decision to sign before the deadline was a tactical move and said that President-elect Bush should not present the treaty to the Senate for ratification until changes were made. The US signature brings to 139 the number of nations that have signed. Israel and Iran did so just before the deadline. Those holding back include North Korea, Libya, China and Iraq. __ Iraq resumes oil exports through Turkey ANKARA, Jan 2 (AFP) - Iraq resumed the export of oil through the port of Ceyhan in southern Turkey on Saturday following renewal by the United Nations of the oil for food programme last month, a spokeswoman for the Turkish state oil and gas company Botas told AFP on Monday. "An oil tanker arrived at the Ceyhan terminal on December 30 and the load was handled," she said. "So the pumping of oil has been resumed," she said. Iraq had resumed the exporting of oil on December 13 from its terminal of Mina Al-Bakr in the south after a 12-day suspension owing to disagreement between the United Nations and Baghdad which demanded that clients pay 40 cents per barrel into an account not controlled by the UN. The humanitarian programme of oil for food, an exception to an embargo imposed against Iraq after it had invaded Kuwait in 1990, has authorised Iraq since the end of December 1996 to sell oil to obtain vital products such as food and medicines. _ Iraq Slams U.N. For Delaying Decision to Aid Palestine BAGHDAD (Jan. 2) XINHUA - An official Iraqi daily on Tuesday slammed the United Nations Security Council for failing to reach an agreement on approval of Ir
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 178
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 178 Friday, December 29, 2000 ___ Christmas...EidThe New Year IT'S FRESH FROM ITS INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE... VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST Talks With U.N. Should Respect Iraq's Principles: Report BAGHDAD (Dec. 29) XINHUA - The upcoming talks between Iraq and the United Nations next month should respect Iraq's principles, a report carried by the official daily Al-Iraq said on Friday. Under the four principles, the talks with the U.N. should be aimed at lifting the decade-old U.N. sanctions; the U.N. should recognize the "great" efforts Iraq has made in implementing the U. N. resolutions on the Iraqi issue; Iraq should be allowed to freely use its natural resources and no country can be allowed to interfere in Iraq's internal affairs. Iraq is ready to have "constructive" talks with U.N. Secretary- General Kofi Annan or any U.N. organizations, the report said, stressing that the talks should respect the principles put forward by the Iraqi government. Annan has expressed that the hope that the upcoming talks between U.N. and Iraq will be able to break the impasse over weapons inspection in the country. At a year-end press conference at the U.N. headquarters in New York on December 19, the U.N. chief said he and Iraqi officials planned to begin talks in New York in early January as the Iraqi issue remained a challenge for the world's leading body. Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz has said that Iraq was ready to hold "a comprehensive dialog" with the U.N. with no preconditions and that the dialog must not be conditioned on that Iraq accepts the U.N. Resolution 1284. The U.N. resolution, adopted last December, offered to suspend the sanctions for renewable periods of 120 days if Iraq shows " full" cooperation with the U.N. arms inspectors. Iraq has rejected the resolution and barred the return of the U. N. arms inspectors who left the country at the end of 1998 shortly before the United States and Britain launched air strikes against Iraq. Iraq has been under U.N. sanctions ever since it invaded Kuwait in 1990, and the sanctions will not be lifted until the U.N. arms inspectors report that Iraq is clear of weapons of mass destruction. ___ POLITICS Rumsfeld >From PA NEWS, December 29th, 2000 Announcing the appointment yesterday, President-elect Bush said Mr Rumsfeld would work to secure a pay rise for the military, forces modernisation and a budget to make sure that missile defence had the priority it merited. He said Mr Rumsfeld's report on missile threats provided ``a compelling argument for the need for the United States to develop a missile defence system that'll work.'' That view was endorsed in July this year by former Tory Prime Minister Baroness Thatcher. In a speech to the Hoover Institution in the US, Lady Thatcher warned: ``In 1998, the Rumsfeld report to the US Congress noted that countries such as North Korea, Iran and Iraq `would be able to inflict major destruction on the United States within about five years of a decision to acquire the capability' ... ``It is the activities of rogue states and the possibility of unplanned launches of missiles armed with warheads which should now be our main concern. We must also be able to prevent the intimidation of friendly states such as Taiwan. The way to achieve this is through the construction of a global system of ballistic missile defence.'' Mr Rumsfeld's views on missile defence are well known, but EU leaders in particular will be keen to learn more of his attitude to Europe's new rapid reaction force. The outgoing Democrat defence secretary, William Cohen, voiced fears that the EU force could make Nato a relic, and similar views have been expressed by prominent politicians on both sides of the Democrat-Republican divide. That nervousness about the European plan, however, may be counterbalanced by Mr Bush's avowed intention to scale back US troop involvement in foreign military missions, an approach which Mr Rumsfeld will have to implement. Mr Bush has talked of replacing ``uncertain missions with well-defined objectives'' and reassessing ``open-ended deployments''. That is likely to mean a gradual recall of American troops from the Balkans, leaving Europe to manage the Nato peacekeeping mission in the region. US troops currently make up around a fifth of the 65,000-strong Nato peacekeeping force in the Balkans. Under the Bush plan, keeping the peace in Bosnia and Kosovo would fall to Europe, while the US would focus its military energies on the Persian Gulf, Asia, and other regions in which Ameri
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 177
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 177 Wednesday, December 27, 2000 ___ Christmas...EidThe New Year IT'S FRESH FROM ITS INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE... VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST Iraq Questions Credibility of UN December 27th, 2000 BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) _ Iraq is questioning the credibility of a U.N. force monitoring the border with Kuwait, saying it does not report flights by American and British warplanes as violations to U.N. resolutions. In a letter to U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, Iraq's foreign minister took the monitors to task over the U.S.-British warplanes, which patrol a no-fly zone in southern Iraq and frequently fire on Iraqi air defense sites that target them. The U.N. Observation and Monitoring force, known as UNIKOM, watches over a no-man's land at the Iraqi-Kuwaiti border, where its role is to monitor all land, sky and sea traffic and report any violations of either nation's territory immediately to the Security Council. ``Most of the warplanes cross the area observed by the UNIKOM posts to strike Iraq and return through the same points,'' Foreign Minister Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf said in the letter, reported by Iraqi television Tuesday night. ``By violating our territories, the warplanes commit sheer violations to U.N. resolutions, obliging the UNIKOM forces to monitor and report these violations immediately ... to the U.N. and the Security Council,'' al-Sahhaf said in his letter. The U.S.-British patrols, conducted since 1992 following the Gulf War, are not mandated by the United Nations and Iraq considers them violations of its sovereignty and international law. The United States and Britain say the patrols _ based out of Saudia Arabia and carriers in the Persian Gulf _ are necessary to protect Iraq's Shiite Muslim minority in the area from the Baghdad government. A similar no-fly zone in the north is enforced by planes based in Turkey. Iraq has been challenging the flights for two years _ locking on to the planes with its radar _ and routinely drawing fire. In its reports, including its most recent one Sept. 27, UNIKOM has highlighted air violations of the no-man's land, but has not identified the origin of the planes and has said it could not chart all violations because the aircraft were flying too high to be identified. Al-Sahhaf dismissed that reasoning in his letter, noting the allies ``themselves announce that their warplanes have carried out daily patrols in Iraq.'' ``Is flying in the no-man's land considered to be an accepted act?'' the letter asked. ``If flying at high altitudes is not considered to be a violation, then we Iraqis can do that, too.'' ``What would the UNIKOM observers then say if Iraqi planes flew over the same area?'' al-Sahhaf asked in the letter. __ Muslims mark Eid with prayers, calls to liberate Jerusalem December 27th, 2000 CAIRO, Egypt (AP) _ The violence in the Palestinian territories overshadowed Muslim celebrations of the end of the holy month of Ramadan on Wednesday, with religious leaders urging the faithful to liberate Jerusalem from the Jews. As Muslims worldwide celebrated Eid al-Fitr, the holiday marking the end of Islam's holiest month, clerics also urged worshippers to divert zakat, or alms, to the Palestinians. In Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the imam of Masjid Al Haram, Islam's holiest site, said ``the tragic events'' in the Palestinian territories are a ``source of sorrow to every Arab, Muslim and fair-minded person in the world.'' ``The Jewish invaders have violated the forbidden, desecrated the sacred and usurped our land in Palestine while the whole world has stood idle,'' Sheik Mohammed Bin Abdellah Al-Sabeel said in a sermon following the Eid prayers. His words were broadcast live across the region on state-owned Saudi satellite television. Muslims believe the Quran, their holy book, was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad over Ramadan 14 centuries ago. They mark the holy month with daylong fasts and celebrate its end with feasting. In Iraq, Baghdad's streets were quiet on the first day of Eid, when many Iraqis traditionally visit cemeteries to pray, drink tea and eat snacks _ keeping their dead beloved company on the holiday. War and sanctions have ravaged Iraq's economy. ``To hell with sanctions! People do not give money to beggars any more because they do not have it to start with,'' a beggar who refused to give his name said as he tried unsuccessfully to collect alms near a Baghdad graveyard. Muslims in many countries ended this Ramadan with few festivities. Palestinian families all over the West Bank and Gaza were mourning their dead. Nearly 350 people have been k
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 176
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 176 Tuesday, December 26, 2000 A MERRY CHRISTMAS AND EID TO ALL SUBSCRIBERS+ Christmas...EidThe New Year IT'S FRESH FROM ITS INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE... VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST Saddam receives Muslim holiday greeting from Iran's Khatami >From AFP ENGLISH, December 26th, 2000 BAGHDAD, Dec 26 (AFP) - Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has received a message of greetings from his Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Khatami, on the eve of the Muslim holidays of Eid al-Fitr, the official news agency INA reported Tuesday. The Iranian president wished for "the unity of all the world's Muslims" in his message to mark the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, it said. Iraq and Iran, which fought a 1980-1988 war that ended in a UN-brokered ceasefire but without a formal peace treaty, have since taken steps to improve relations. Key stumbling blocks remain their support for each other's opposition groups and the release of prisoners from the conflict. Iran airspace not open to Iraq: paper TEHRAN, Dec 26 (AFP) - Iran is still keeping its airspace closed to Iraqi planes in line with the 10-year-old UN air embargo despite claims to the contrary by Iranian officials, a conservative paper reported Tuesday. The Qods daily said the decision to keep upholding the embargo was made after "protests from the foreign ministry and the intervention of the president's office." The transport ministry had suggested last week that Iraqi planes would be welcome to use Iranian airspace, as more and more countries have begun flouting the controversial embargo. Iran and Iraq, whose bitter 1980-1988 war left hundreds of thousands dead on both sides, have been working in recent months to improve relations. More than 80 flights have landed in Baghdad since Saddam International airport reopened four months ago, as Arab countries in particular have queued up to offer their support to the Iraqi regime. In late November, Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz flew to Damascus, becoming the first Iraqi official to fly out of Baghdad since the embargo was put in place in 1990. __ Saddam calls on Christians, Muslims to fight against Israel BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) _ In a Christmas letter published Monday on the front pages of all Baghdad newspapers, President Saddam Hussein called on Christians and Muslims of the world to rise up against Israel and the ``Zionist conspiracy.'' In his traditional Christmas letter, Saddam praised Christians and other Iraqis for standing up to conspiracies through which ``the United States, Britain and Zionism ... have tried to bend Iraqis' will, bring them to their knees and master their independent decision.'' The president called on Christians and Muslims everywhere to take ``the path of jihad (holy war), without which we cannot attain our aspirations of establishing right, justice and peace and delivering humanity from the evils of aggressors, criminal killers.'' ``The Zionist conspiracy aims at Judaizing (Jerusalem) and other areas of Palestine and annihilating its indigenous population, Muslims and Christians, with the backing of America,'' al-Thawra daily quoted Saddam as saying in his letter. Iraq opposes peace agreements signed between Israel and the Palestinians and those signed with neighboring countries. Since Israeli-Palestinian clashes began in late September, more than 340 people, most Palestinians, have died and thousands have been injured. Earlier this month Iraq pledged to allocate dlrs 881 million worth of oil revenues to support the Palestinian uprising. Hussein's Son Debuts in Iraq Parliament Mideast: Leader's eldest makes his first appearance since his election. He calls for more democracy, criticizes U.S. >From LOS ANGELES TIMES, December 25th, 2000 Saddam Hus
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 175
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 175 Friday, December 22, 2000 __ IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM THE EDITORIn an effort to make the newsletter more useful to you - and to ensure that you do not receive unwanted ISMs - we will be transferring to a new delivery system over the next month. You will be invited to re-subscribe to ISM and you MUST respond to the message if you wish to continue to be sent the newsletter. If you do not respond, your name will be taken from the list of recipients. It's that simple. Have a wonderful Christmas and/or Eid ___ Christmas...EidThe New Year IT'S FRESH FROM ITS INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE... VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST __ NO COVER-UPS ON GULF WAR SYNDROME, PANEL SAYS >From CHICAGO TRIBUNE, December 21st, 2000 A presidential panel says the Pentagon worked "diligently" and didn't cover up anything in investigating Persian Gulf war syndrome, veterans' ailments still unexplained 10 years after the war. But the head of one veterans advocacy group called the conclusion "a whitewash." A 90-page report released Wednesday details 30 months of work by the board, ordered by President Clinton to oversee Pentagon investigations of illnesses reported by thousands of veterans of the 1991 war. One of the board's seven members, Dr. Vinh Cam, dissented in a three-page letter. An immunologist, Cam charged that the board, made up largely of retired military brass, lacked independence from the Pentagon office it was overseeing, the Office of the Special Assistant for Gulf War Illinois, or OSAGWI. She also said it had no authority to suggest that stress be studied further as a possible cause. "At times [the board] acted more like an extension of OSAGWI," Cam wrote. The investigating board concluded that the Defense Department has "worked diligently to fulfill the president's directive to `leave no stone unturned' in investigating possible causes" for illnesses, which include memory loss, nervous system disorders, headaches, joint pains and chronic fatigue. It also found the department "made no effort to deliberately withhold information," an allegation made by critics who believe the Pentagon is hiding data about Iraqi chemical warfare agents or other toxins to which veterans may have been exposed. "On the contrary, [the Pentagon] has made an extraordinary effort to publicize its findings through the publication of reports and newsletters, public outreach meetings, briefings to veterans," a Web site and so on, said the Presidential Special Oversight Board for Department of Defense Investigations of Gulf War Chemical and Biological Incidents. The board repeated the theme of all Pentagon findings so far: "To date, research has not validated any specific cause of these illnesses." It said research must continue. An estimated $300 million has been spent and scores of studies have looked into such possible culprits as Iraq's chemical and biological weapons, vaccinations of military personnel, oil well fires, anti-nerve agent tablets taken by troops, desert sand and stress. "It's a whitewash, exactly the kind of whitewash we were expecting," said Pat Eddington of the advocacy group National Gulf War Resource Center, criticizing what he called the board's "cozy relationship with the Pentagon." In a 1997 lawsuit pending in federal court, Eddington is seeking thousands of pages of Pentagon and CIA documents he says could contain information on Iraqi chemical and biological weapons and other information relating to troop health. Wednesday's report is the final one by the oversight board, which goes out of business this month. Officials have said that of the 700,000 troops who served in the Persian Gulf war, some 100,000 have registered with the Pentagon or Veterans Affairs Department for free exams to look into unexplained illnesses. The two agencies have said about 20,000 of those were found to be ill. __ Baghdad gives green light to oil exports >From MIDDLE EAST ECONOMIC DIGEST, December 22nd, 2000 Iraq resumed oil exports on 13 December following a 12-day suspension of sales over a price dispute between Baghdad and the UN. Iraq stopped pumping crude oil at its two authorised outlets of Mina al-Bakr and Ceyhan in Turkey on 1 December after the UN refused to accept Iraq's proposed prices for December. These were pitched below the market price to enable Baghdad to impose a $0.50-a-barrel surcharge (MEED 15:12:00). The price dispute was settled on 8 December, but Iraq renewed demands that customers pay the extra tariff, albei
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 173
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 173 Tuesday, December 19, 2000 FRESH FROM ITS INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE... VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST UN oil overseers accept Iraqi oil-pricing formula: diplomats UNITED NATIONS, Dec 18 (AFP) - The United Nations' oil overseers have accepted a new formula proposed by Iraq for the pricing of its crude through the second half of December, diplomats here said Monday. The new formula is expected to be approved Tuesday by the UN Sanctions Committee, said the diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity. UN spokesman Fred Eckhard confirmed the Iraqi oil authority had requested on Friday a revision of the pricing formula "in light of recent market changes. " Iraq on December 13 resumed its oil exports after suspending them for 12 days due to the dispute over the UN-run 'food-for-oil' programme, which allows the sanctions-hit state to export crude in six-month phases to purchase essential goods. According to the diplomats here, Baghdad had initially asked for a 70-cent reduction in the price per barrel of oil which it exports to Europe, while it wanted the pricing formula for exports to North America and Asia left unchanged. The UN's oil overseers has accepted a 50-cent reduction in the price per barrel of oil destined for Europe, and has recommended this formula to the UN Security Council's Sanctions Committee, the diplomatic sources said. The price of oil on world markets fluctuates constantly. When Iraq submits its monthly pricing formula, it asks the UN to sell its oil at a fixed discount below the fluctuating price of benchmark oils. However Iraq's advocacy of a lower official prices for its oil exports to Europe raised suspicions here that the latest pricing formula was intended to conceal a surcharge. According to a report in the authoritative Middle East Economic Survey magazine in late November, Iraq wants certain purchasers of its oil to pay a surcharge into a bank account not controlled by the UN. UN officials and diplomats said that such a surcharge would violate UN sanctions. Eckhard said the Security Council's 661 Sanctions Committee, which deals with Iraq, had until 2300 GMT Tuesday to reach a decision on the proposed pricing formula for the second half of December. Benchmark Brent North Sea crude for delivery in February stayed above 26 dollars in London Monday, but OPEC said that its basket oil price had fallen to 22.92 dollars. __ PUK says Turkish forces `not present` in northern Iraq - Iran report Text of report by Iranian news agency IRNA Sanandaj, 19 December: Quoting the spokesman for the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan [PUK], the [PUK] radio denied on Tuesday [19 December] that Turkish forces were present in areas which are under the PUK's control. The radio which can be heard in Sanandaj [in Iranian Kordestan], said that such news reports were broadcast because the Turkish Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) had hatched plots aimed at resuming the war in Iraqi Kurdistan. On Monday [18 December], the PKK radio reported that Turkish army commandos had entered the areas which were under the PUK's control and that they had ensconced themselves in Charqurna and Raniyah. ___ Baghdad, Moscow coordinate for lifting of embargo BAGHDAD, Dec 18 (AFP) - A Russian envoy held talks here Monday with Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz on efforts to lift the decade-old UN embargo on Baghdad, the official news agency INA reported. It said Nikolai Kartuzov and Aziz reviewed "the latest developments on the Iraq situation and the continuation of coordination between the two countries". On Saturday, Kartuzov said Russia was working "seriously" for a lifting of the embargo slapped on Baghdad for its 1990 invasion of Kuwait and linked to the elimination of banned Iraqi weaponry. The foreign ministry in Moscow, meanwhile, said Russia was seeking a renewal of cooperation between Iraq and the United Nations on the issue of disarmament to clear the way for a suspension of sanctions to be followed by their lifting. Baghdad and the United Nations are expected to reopen a dialogue in January, more than a year after a UN Security Council resolution offering a suspension of sanctions in return for Iraq's cooperation with a new arms control regime. Iraq has rejected the resolution which dates back to December 1999, a year after UN arms inspectors were evacuated on the eve of a US-British air war. ___ Iraqis take Ramadan `iftar` in Saddam's palaces BAGHDAD, Dec 18 (AFP) - President Saddam Hussein has opened his palaces to the Iraqi people to take the "iftar
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 172 Monday December 18,2000 India may buy crude oil from Iraq at 7 usd/barrel: report BOMBAY (AFX-ASIA) - The Indian and Iraqi governments are working on a deal whereby India will buy from Iraq crude oil at 7 usd a barrel in exchange for wheat supplies, the Economic Times reported, quoting unnamed ministry sources. A government delegation will be visiting Iraq shortly to finalise the price at which India will finally buy the oil and the amounts involved, it said. The report said the deal, which is part of an oil-for-wheat programme, is subject to UN approval. The deal will also help India find an export market for its bumper wheat crop, the report added. It said the immediate effect of the deal would be to check the increasing oil pool deficit, estimated to be in the region of 120 bln rupees by the end of the current year to March. If the deal goes through, the oil pool deficit may be wiped out and even contribute positive cash flow into the account, the newspaper said. It said the pricing of the oil is likely to be arrived at by subtracting some cents from the average of the Dubai and Oman oil prices, yielding the approximate price which India will pay per barrel to Iraq. The reduction in the price is due to the inferior quality of Basrah light oil as compared to Dubai and Oman, it added. __ Iraq sends mixed signals with new oil premium demand By BridgeNews Nicosia--Dec. 18--Confusion continued to surround Iraqi oil exports, despite a limited resumption, due to the latest reported Iraqi demand for a premium of 40 U.S. cents to be paid into a non-U.N. account, the Middle East Economic Survey (MEES) reported Monday. The U.N. Sanctions Committee, which oversees the oil-for-aid program, is due to meet and discuss the issue on Dec. 19. MEES pointed out that while some cargoes had loaded and left from the Gulf terminal of Mina al-Bakr, there had been no exports from the Turkish export terminal of Ceyhan, in part due to a fall in Russian Urals differentials, which has left Kirkuk uncompetitive in December. "MEES soundings indicate there are two theories to explain the confusion surrounding the surcharge issue," it said. "The first is that the companies lifting from Mina al-Bakr have reached some kind of special agreement with SOMO--to pay the surcharge by barter or other arrangement. "There has been speculation, for example, that the recently concluded agreement between Iraq and India--covering, among other things, the exchange of more Indian wheat for an increased volume of Iraqi oil--might have provided a mechanism for circumventing the payment of the surcharge," it added. MEES said the other theory is that SOMO is exempting lifters under the 8th U.N. oil-for-food program (as all the current customers are) because of the costly $60,000 per day demurrage that the lifters who already had their ships at Mina al-Bakr have been paying. There are 56 approved contracts for 77 million barrels yet to be sold from the 8th phase, which officially ended on Dec. 5. Companies with tankers in the northern Gulf are Bayoil, Vitol, Koch, Coastal, Taurus and IOC. "For the moment, though, lifters who do not want to pay a surcharge are faced with a confused picture. The Security Council is also left wondering how to prevent the surcharge when there is no physical evidence that it is being paid. This, perhaps, is Iraq's intention," MEES said. These factors are combining to create uncertainty about the volume of Iraqi crude that will reach the markets in December. Aside from the confusion over the surcharge, SOMO needs to take steps to adjust the price of Kirkuk crude to make it competitive with Urals. Unless the price formula is amended, there are likely to be only small volumes, if any, of Kirkuk crude exports from Ceyhan before January. _ Russia, US urge Baghdad to resume cooperation with UN BridgeNews Moscow--Dec. 18--Russia and the United States at their consultations over the weekend urged Iraq to resume cooperation with the United Nations in the arms control sphere, a Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman said Monday. Russia believes the restoration of international control over the banned Iraqi military programs and resumption of Baghdad's cooperation with the United Nations will pave the way for lifting the U.N. sanctions against Iraq, the spokesman added. "While discussing the situation around Iraq, Russian and U.S. officials have supported the idea of restoring Baghdad's cooperation with the United Nations as soon as possible in the sphere of arms monitoring," the spokesman said. Russia also called for finding political solution to the no-fly-zones problem, he said. Moscow has repeatedly said it does not recognize the no-fly zones, enforced by the United States and Great Britain, and condemned the continuing U.S./U.K. air strikes against Iraq. The sides have agreed to "deepen the discussion" of the issues related
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 171
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 171 Thursday, December 14 2000 IRAQI OIL EXPORTS SET TO ROLL FOR SECOND DAY DUBAI, Dec 14 (Reuters) - Iraqi crude oil exports were set to roll for a second day out of Mina al-Bakr port, but Baghdad kept quiet on whether a second customer had been excused from its controversial demand for a surcharge. An Iraqi oil official was tight-lipped about the identity of the customer, due to load Basrah Light crude oil later on Thursday. "A third ship is to load later today at Mina al-Bakr," the official told Reuters by telephone from Baghdad. When asked which company was set to load, he said: "Let us see in two to three hours." About two thirds of the oil from Mina al-Bakr has been imported into the United States while the rest generally heads into Asian markets. He declined to be drawn on whether Iraq had dropped its demand for a 40-cent per barrel surcharge to be paid outside the United Nations oil-for-food deal, which most Security Council members view as a violation of sanctions on Iraq. The surcharge request caused a 12-day break in some 2.3 million barrels per day (bpd) of Iraqi oil sales after customers refused to pay and break U.N. sanctions, imposed after Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990. Two Indian Oil Corp (IOC) tankers were loaded on Wednesday at Mina al-Bakr. IOC used diplomatic channels to convince Baghdad to exempt the company from the surcharge, an Indian industry source said on Thursday. "This has been handled by the External Affairs Ministry since Tuesday," the official told Reuters. "We sense a preferential treatment but we only know our gains, not whether it is going to be extended to others," he said. Russia, one of Iraq's staunchest allies, blocked a U.N. committee on Wednesday from ordering buyers not to pay the surcharge. U.S. officials had proposed the Security Council's Iraqi sanctions committee ask oil companies "not to pay a surcharge of any kind to Iraq." An Arab diplomat said on Wednesday that Iraq stands by its position that it has not asked crude oil customers to pay the surcharge. While lifters are queueing at the Mina al-Bakr terminal, there has been a notable lack of activity at the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, Baghdad's other U.N. authorised export outlet providing crude mostly for European-based users. Some oil traders wonder whether Ceyhan will witness any loadings during December because the price of Kirkuk now looked uncompetitive versus rival Russian Urals grade, which was valued around Dated Brent - $2.35/-$3.00 per barrel for deliveries into the Mediterranean market. The Iraqi oil official noted the deterioration in the Urals price and said state oil marketer SOMO was preparing to take action on the December Kirkuk price to Europe of Dated Brent - $3.55 for loading free-on-board Ceyhan. "After we submitted the December price mechanism, Urals changed drastically," he said. "We will do something definitely, but SOMO is still studying the matter." The Iraqi oil official also sought to calm lifters' concerns that Baghdad would prevent deliveries of its crude oil into the United States. "There is no such thing at all," he said. Baghdad threatened recently to punish any company or country supplying its crude oil to countries it regards as hostile. The United States, held in contempt by Iraq, has been importing about 750,000 bpd of Iraqi oil from third parties. __ IRAQ MAY HAVE FILLED TANKERS BUT OIL IS STILL NOT FLOWING HOUSTON - Iraq filled its first export tankers after a nearly two-week suspension, but the move apparently doesn't signal a resumption of exports. "Until somebody changes their mind, Iraqi oil is still not flowing," said Larry Goldstein, president of the Petroleum Industry Research Foundation. Experts say Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein is still pressing for buyers of Iraqi oil to pay a surcharge of 40 cents a barrel. Such a direct payment to Iraq violates United Nations sanctions. But officials of the state run Indian Oil Corp. said Baghdad dropped that surcharge request. Some officials say Iraq made the exception following a large oil-for-grain deal struck last month during a visit to India by senior Iraqi ministers. Iraq suspended oil exports of 2.3 million barrels a day Dec. 1 after buyers refused to pay a surcharge. Despite the delay, oil markets remained largely unfazed. Yesterday, crude prices on the January contract fell 94 cents to $28.74 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. At the U.N., Russia blocked a committee from telling buyers of Iraqi oil not to pay the surcharge. U.S. officials had proposed that the Security Council's Iraqi sanctions committee ask oil companies "not to pay a surcharge of any kind to Iraq." The U.N. allows Iraq to export oil provided the revenue goes into a U.N. account set up after the Gulf War. This revenue allows Iraq to import food and medicine among other items. IRAQ
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 170
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 170 Wednesday, December 13, 2000 Iran sends letters to UN on opposition attacks, Iraqi cease-fire violations. Text of report in English by Iranian news agency IRNA United Nations, New York, 13 December: Two letters by the Islamic Republic of Iran on attacks by terrorist Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO) and violation of Iran-Iraq cease-fire agreement by Iraqi forces were circulated at the UN Security Council on Tuesday [12 December]. The cases of cease-fire violation as well as MKO attacks were listed in two letters sent by Iran's permanent ambassador to the UN Hadi Nezhad-Hoseynian to the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. The letters included verbal protest by Iran's Foreign Ministry to the Iraqi embassy in Tehran on MKO mortar attacks against residential areas in the Iranian capital city of Tehran on 21 and 22 October 2000 as well as 13 cases of cease-fire violations by Iraqi soldiers and MKO members on 18 to 23 March 2000. The letters also said that during the border conflicts, happened following the cease-fire violation by the Iraqi forces, an Iraqi soldier was killed and another was arrested by the Iranian forces. Source: IRNA news agency, Tehran, in English 0914 gmt 13 Dec 00. Iraq's Ceyhan Pipeline Hasn't Stopped Pumping-Sources. ISTANBUL (DOW JONES)-Iraq early Wednesday is still pumping oil to Ceyhan, sources said, despite earlier expectations that the pumping would stop. Sources said as of 0600 GMT, Iraqi crude is still flowing through Ceyhan "at a very low speed." Sources said Ceyhan still has one more storage tank to be filled, which will still take a few hours. Tuesday, Iraq was pumping at the speed of 700,000 to 800,000 barrels a day. Wednesday's speed indicates the amount has declined to half that amount. Iraqi exports from Ceyhan were halted Nov. 30, due to pricing disagreements between Iraq and the U.N. The source said Ceyhan has a total capacity of 10 million barrels, and capacity for 8 million bbl is currently useable. __ Iraq resumes oil exports after 12-day break ... DUBAI, Dec 13 (MEDIAFAX) - Iraq on Wednesday ended a 12-day suspension of U.N.-monitored oil sales when it began pumping crude again from its Gulf port of Mina al-Bakr. Iraqi engineers began to load a tanker chartered to the Indian Oil Corp (IOC) after Baghdad dropped its demand for a special payment to be made direct into an Iraqi bank account. "The Jade is definitely loading and the Nikolaos is about toberth," an Iraqi official told Reuters by telephone from Baghdad of two tankers chartered to IOC. Iraq had kept 2.3 million barrels a day of oil sales on hold since December 1 after its customers under the United Nations oil-for-food exchange, an exception to Gulf War sanctions, declined to meet Iraqi demands or a surcharge. An official in India confirmed that IOC had started loading a million-barrel cargo of Basrah Light crude at 0200 local time (2300 GMT) and said India was paying no surcharge. "We're not violating any U.N. sanctions. India will not violate any U.N. sanctions," an industry official in India told Reuters."Indian Oil is not paying any surcharge." Any payments direct to Iraq would contravene U.N. rules that call for all revenues to be deposited in a U.N. escrow account. Iraq's demand for the fee had been seen as its boldest move yet to wrest back some control from the U.N. over oil export revenues after 10 years of sanctions imposed after the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Turkish terminal source says Iraqi pipelines shut down. Dec 13, 2000 BridgeNews, Istanbul-Dec. 13-Iraq's twin, trans-Turkey pipelines were closed down at 0700 GMT Wednesday, a source at their Ceyhan export terminal in Turkey on the eastern Mediterranean said. The source said as well that there were no tankers waiting to load, although the terminal's storage tanks were full. Turkish television said on Tuesday night that Iraq had decided to halt pumping through the pipelines as of 0400 GMT, due to ships refusing to load. Iraq asked Monday for a premium of 40 U.S. cents per barrel for its crude oil cargoes from Tuesday onward, after the United Nations and contract customers had rejected a previous similar request. Reports have said that customers are also refusing to pay the 40 cents premium. "The pipelines are shut, because our tanks are completely full," the source at the terminal said, on Wednesday. Analysts said Iraq must therefore have stepped up pumping to the terminal on Tuesday, before shutting the pipelines down. On Tuesday, terminal sources had said there was storage left for about 4 days more pumping. "There are no ships. We are waiting for ships, and when the ships come, we will start the pumping again," the 1ource said. He said that so far, there had been no confirmations for tanker loadin
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR NUMBER 169
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR NUMBER 169 Monday, December 11, 2000 LATEST NEWS++ FRESH FROM ITS INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE... VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST __ Syrian Oil Exports Up After Iraq Link Opens - MEES. NEW YORK - (Dow Jones)-Crude oil exports from Syria have risen sharply, by 140,000 barrels a day, in December to 430,000 b/d, the Middle East Economic Survey newsletter reported Monday, citing industry sources. MEES said the increase came after Syria on Nov. 20 started receiving 150,000 b/d of an agreed 200,000 b/d of Iraqi Basrah Light crude through a pipeline shut since 1982. The move is outside of the U.N. oil-for-food plan under which the U.N. monitors Iraqi oil exports and disperses revenues for the purchase of food and humanitarian aid. On Nov. 22, the U.N. said it received assurances that Syria wasn't illegally importing Iraq crude. An oil industry source in Damascus also said then that the 150,000 b/d shipped from Iraq was purely for testing the pipeline. Oil industry officials have said earlier that Syria intended to use Iraqi crude in its domestic refineries and boost exports of its own grades. MEES said that apart from the 140,000 b/d rise, "a further 40,000 b/d (is) still available to Syria's state-owned oil trading organization Sytrol." Syrian light crude exports increased by 110,000 b/d from the normal range, to 360,000 b/d, the newsletter said, while export of heavy Suwaidiyah crude also rose above its usual 70,000 b/d - "with a further 30,000 b/d still available." MEES said the Iraqi crude exports to Syria is part of the expanding cross-border trade with neighboring countries outside the oil-for-food program. "MEES understands that plans call for sending 75,000 b/d to the Homs refinery and 120,000 b/d to the Banias refinery. "It is further understood," the newsletter said, "that the economic agreement between the two countries provides for cash payment and barter trade for the crude purchases, with the final price put at approximately $20 a barrel - similar to favorable terms for Jordan's cross-border oil." _ Iraq Seeks Surcharge For Lower UN-Approved Dec Oil Prices. LONDON -(Dow Jones)-Iraq Monday asked buyers of its crude oil to pay a cash surcharge above the official U.N.-approved selling price, sources said. This is the second time in recent weeks that Iraq's State Oil Marketing Organization has sought a surcharge for oil deliveries. Iraq suspended exports Nov. 30 when the U.N. declined to approve below-market prices for December oil sales. Prior to that, buyers said they couldn't pay a surcharge because it would violate U.N. trade sanctions. There were no tankers preparing to lift oil at either of Iraq's approved export points Monday, sources said. On Friday, the U.N. reversed course and agreed to SOMO's December price proposal. An Iraqi official said Baghdad would accept compensation in other forms, such as goods or services. SOMO initially sought a 50-cent-a-barrel surcharge, buyers said. On Monday, the figure was reportedly lowered to 40 cents/bbl, but it wasn't mentioned in written communications with buyers, sources said. In this way, buyers and SOMO are afforded some flexibility, according to one Iraqi oil expert. __ US oil prices jump as Iraq rekindles export dispute. NEW YORK, Dec 11 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil prices bounced higher Monday, recovering some of last week's heavy losses after key producer Iraq reopened a payment dispute with the United Nations (UN) that has cut its exports for nearly two weeks. Crude oil prices on the benchmark New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) were up 60 cents to $29.04 a barrel, after hitting as high as $29.45 on concerns that Iraqi oil export disruptions would continue. Baghdad told its oil customers Monday they would have to make 40-cents-a-barrel payments direct to an Iraqi bank account - an effort to regain control of its oil revenues in defiance of UN sanctions imposed after the Gulf War. The turn of events came as a shock to oil dealers, who were expecting a resumption of the OPEC member's oil exports after the issue of a surcharge appeared to cool after an agreement at the U.N. last Friday. Wrangling over the sanctions, which require that buyers of Iraqi oil make payments directly to a U.N. controlled account, has led to a disruption in Iraq's exports since December 1. "No way are we going to be turning a blind eye to this," said a diplomat at the United Nations in New York. Confusing the picture, however, a tanker chartered by state-owned Indian Oil Corp., moved alongside the berth at Iraq's Mina al-
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 166
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 166 Tuesday, December 5, 2000 LATEST NEWS++ FRESH FROM ITS INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE... VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST __ Iraqi spokesman reports US-UK air sorties on 5th December. Text of report by Iraqi TV on 5th December The US and British ravens continued their treacherous aggression against Iraq, violating our airspace and targeting our defenceless cities, aiming to undermine our people's steadfastness as they heroically confront all conspiratorial schemes. A spokesman for the Air Defence Command said in a statement to the Iraqi News Agency that at 1040 [0740 gmt] this morning, the evil US and British ravens violated our airspace through the Turkish airspace with Turkey's direct support. Backed by an AWACS plane from Turkish airspace, they carried out 18 air sorties, flying over areas in the governorates of Dahuk, Arbil and Ninawa, before leaving our airspace to the bases of evil and aggression in Turkey. The spokesman said that the number of the combat air sorties since the Conquest Day on 17th December 1998 has reached 5,662 from Turkish airspace. Meanwhile the total number of the combat air sorties carried out from Saudi, Kuwaiti and Turkish airspace has reached 27,479. __ Jerusalem bishop-in-exile in talks with Deputy Prime Minister Aziz. Text of report by Iraqi radio on 5th December Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz has received Bishop [Hilarion] Capucci and the Italian delegation accompanying him. Capucci arrived in Iraq [on 5th December] aboard the [Syrian] solidarity plane that landed at Saddam International Airport. Bishop Capucci expressed his sincerest greetings to the Iraqi people and leadership. He stressed the need to confront the unjust embargo with all means and to continue constructive action to urge the Italian government to take an effective part in lifting the embargo imposed on Iraq, especially after the Italian parliament made important decisions in this regard. Tariq Aziz expressed his appreciation of the valuable efforts made by Bishop Capucci and the friends in Italy. He appreciated the stands of the Italian church calling for lifting the blockade imposed on Iraq. He also voiced appreciation of the humanitarian efforts exerted to ease the suffering of the people of Iraq. U.N. deadlocked on new Iraq oil-for-food plan. UNITED NATIONS, Dec 5 (Reuters) - U.N. Security Council members were deadlocked on Tuesday on a resolution that would extend for six months the Iraqi oil-for-food program, considered key before Baghdad lifts any ban on oil exports. Negotiations on the draft were expected to continue until the last minute before the program expires at midnight. The plan allows Iraq to sell oil under U.N. supervision to buy food, medicine, oil spare parts and a host of other goods in an effort to ease the impact of U.N. sanctions imposed in August 1990 after it invaded Kuwait. While the resolution is not directly tied to Iraq's suspension of oil flows since last Friday, diplomats believe Baghdad will wait until the measure is adopted before taking any steps to rescind its cut off on crude oil exports. Iraq has proposed that buyers of its oil pay a surcharge of 50 cents a barrel into a fund outside U.N. control, a move the buyers have refused because it would violate the sanctions. It also proposed lower oil prices for December apparently to meet this aim, which prompted the United Nations to reject its pricing formula. Iraq then last week suspended shipments of 2.3 million barrels a day of crude. In an effort to meet Iraq's complaints in part, the draft resolution contains a "cash component" of up to 600 million euros, the equivalent of about $525 million, over the next six months. Baghdad wants the funds for the cost of producing and transporting oil, on top of $600 million it gets every six months. But the United States and Britain insist the "cash component" come under U.N. supervision and be used for humanitarian supplies, not just oil-related costs. France, Russia and China, the other permanent Security Council members with veto power, agree with Iraq. Noting Iraq has ordered little medicine in the past few months, British ambassador Sir Jeremy Greenstock said several council members did not want funds "for the industrial sector without agreeing to it for the humanitarian sector." This feeling, he said, was "shared beyond the U.S. and the U.K. so that it is an area of controversy." U.N. officials working for Benon Sevan, executive director of the U.N. oil-for-food program, said they were in touch with Iraq to work out a
Massive postcard appeal to Kofi Anan on behalf of Iraqi mothers and children.
Dear Friends of Iraq, A stunning painting of a mother and child in the Al-Amiriyeh Shelter in Iraq has been made by a young American artist, a member of the Bruderhof Communities. This painting symbolizes the grief and suffering of the Iraqi people, especially the mothers and children, not only when the shelter was bombed, but also under the sanctions. It was painted in memory of the innocent civilian victims who were murdered when the American Forces bombed Al-Amiriya Shelter in Baghdad on February 13, 1991. The grief of those who mourn the loss of their loved ones and the pain of those who still suffer under the sanctions cry out to Heaven. She painting symbolizes, with white doves, the souls of those who were martyred. It is a call for the end of the cruel and unjust sanctions. A large printing of post cards of this painting will be made and it is hoped that hundreds, if not thousands, of these postcards will be mailed to Kofi Anan to arrive prior to February 13, the anniversary of the bombing. If you would like to participate please let me know how many cards to send to you. If you can contribute to help cover the costs of printing and the mailing let me know. With very best wishes, Mark L. Clement
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 168
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 168 Friday, December 9, 2000 LATEST NEWS++ FRESH FROM ITS INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE... VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST __ UN panel agrees on Iraqi oil prices. UNITED NATIONS Dec 8 (Reuters) - A U.N. committee monitoring Iraqi sanctions agreed late on Friday to Baghdad's proposal for the price of its December oil, opening the way for a resumption of Iraq crude exports, suspended last week. The Security Council Iraqi Sanctions Committee, as expected followed the advance of U.N. oil experts, known as overseers, who recommended on Thursday the latest price proposal by Iraq be accepted. Individual committee members had until 6 p.m. EST (2300 GMT) Friday to object to Iraq's proposed oil prices and a U.N. official said none of them did. Iraq last week cut off its 2.3 million barrels per day of oil flows, about five percent of the world's exports, after the overseers said the prices Baghdad submitted for December were too low and rejected them. Industry sources said this was an attempt by Baghdad to compensate for a 50 cent per barrel surcharge it wanted paid directly into its own bank account, rather than to an U.N. escrow account, as required under the sanctions, imposed after Iraq invaded Kuwait in August 1990. But buyers of Iraqi oil refused, saying this violated the sanctions. Baghdad earlier denied it had made such a demand and oil traders reported it had been dropped. Under a U.N. oil-for-food program, Iraq is allowed to sell unlimited quantities oil, under U.N. supervision, in order to buy food, medicine, oil equipment and a host of other goods in an effort to ease the impact of the sanctions on ordinary Iraqis. This year, it has sold about $17 billion of oil. The oil revenues are controlled by the United Nations, which then pays suppliers of goods Iraq has ordered. Iraq's recent moves were seen as an attempt by Baghdad to gain control over some of its oil sales monies. Iraq's cut-off of oil has cost a tight world market approximately 15 million barrels in lost export volumes. But oil prices have fallen some $6, almost 20 percent, since the stoppage, mainly because the United States and others said they would make up for Iraqi crude by using their own oil reserves. U.S. crude oil prices dropped another 91 cents to $28.30 a barrel in Friday trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Iraq's new prices include incentives to entice reluctant buyers following the week of suspended crude exports, the diplomats reported. The prices are 30 cents below fair market value for shipments to the United States and Europe and 20 cents for Asian shipments. The U.N. oil overseers acknowledged they were close to those they and the Security Council's sanctions committee rejected 10 days ago. But they recommended approval anyway, saying that a drop in physical oil prices since and then meant buyers needed an incentive, the diplomats said. Iraq's Oil Minister Amir Muhammed Rasheed said on Thursday that Baghdad was studying a U.N. Security Council's resolution which on Tuesday renewed the oil-for-food program for another six months. The program and any extension requires Iraq's approval. _ Iraq says suppliers fail to respect contracts. Dubai - Iraq's special envoy arrived in the UAE yesterday to congratulate President His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan on his swift recovery and safe return home. Iraqi Trade Minister Mohammed Mahdi Saleh, scheduled to return to Baghdad today, also took the opportunity to reiterate his government's latest challenge to the crippling UN sanctions. On December 1 Iraq halted oil exports when importers refused to pay a surcharge - 50 cents a barrel - outside the UN oil-for-food programme. Saleh conveyed Baghdad's commitment to rebuilding its economy, at an opportune moment when international public opinion seems to be shifting in its favour. "The Iraqi government took this decision in order to cover oil sector expenses," Saleh said. "Otherwise it will not be able to keep producing and exporting oil." Whether this will negatively impact on Iraq's economy is of little concern, he said. "Our economy is already in dire condition," said Saleh, pointing out that companies with which Iraq has been dealing under the oil-for-food programme have failed to respect the contracts. He presented a chart listing contracts made between 1997 and the present, indicating the total sum agreed upon against the actual quantity received. For instance, Baghdad has only received 61 per cent of food, 38 per cent of medical supplies, 15 per cent of electrical equipment, and 39 per cent of agricultural goods. S
TO ALL PEACE SEEKERS WHEREVER THEY ARE
FAMILIES FORUM bereaved families of fallen soldiers and victims of terrorist acts supporting peace tolerance and democracy TO ALL PEACE SEEKERS WHEREVER THEY ARE A moment before darkness falls upon us and covers the rays of hope, and with the desperate feeling that a tragedy is about to happen, we, bereaved parents members of Families Forum, cry out in despair to the two nations and their leaders: Return immediately and unconditionally to the negotiating table before it is too late. This cry, and the terrible and incurable pain that stems from the torn hearts of bereaved families, comes from the insight of the full meaning of war and the clear understanding no other solution will lead to peace except negotiations. Beginning Sunday 3rd December, a Hunger Strike Peace Tent will be set up at Rabin Square in Tel-Aviv where a symbolic chain-fasting by bereaved families will take place. Its purpose is to cry out for peace, to call for an historic reconciliation and return to sanity before a catastrophe takes place. We call on all seekers of peace, whose voice has been silent recently, to join us and show the people and the world the extent of their support in the peace process. We call on all seekers of peace to exert massive pressure on leaders of both nations to walk down the path of peace. This is the decisive moment between light and darkness, between hope and despair, between peace and war. There is no intermediary way, and no other alternative. This is the moment to take a clear and resolved stance, and let history judge us on the moment of truth. Each and every one of us owes it to his/her children when they ask "Where were you, and what did you do on these historic moments when the destiny of the state of Israel was decided?" We raise the flag of peace and call on all those who support peace in Israel and throughout the world to join and support us in their masses at this crucial moment. Come and endorse your support at the Hunger Strike Peace Tent. PARENTS CIRCLE / FAMILIES FORUM Contact us: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Help us by contributing towards the cost of the tent.
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 167
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 167 Thursday, December 7, 2000. LATEST NEWS++ FRESH FROM ITS INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE... VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST ___ Jerusalem bishop-in-exile expresses support for Iraqi. Source: Iraqi TV, Baghdad, in Arabic 2000 gmt 6 Dec 00 Excerpt from report by Iraqi TV on 6th December Foreign Minister Muhammad Sa'id al-Sahhaf today met Bishop Hilarion Capucci [Jerusalem bishop in exile] and his accompanying delegation. Capucci expressed pleasure to visit Iraq and his solidarity with the Iraqi people who are heroically and bravely confronting the crime of the unjust siege imposed on them. He said that he and his delegation are making efforts, in coordination with several friendly parties in Italy and the Vatican, towards lifting this unjust siege. The foreign minister praised the positions of Bishop Capucci and his delegation and their efforts in support of the Iraqi cause. The minister spoke about the latest developments and prospects for developing relations between Iraq and both the Vatican and Italy... _ Baghdad digs in heels on oil prices. Traders are bracing themselves for disruptions in the supply of Iraqi crude to the market amid signs that Baghdad is determined to stick by its new pricing formula, which was rejected by the UN sanctions committee on 27 November. The UN said the formula for December deliveries was too low, and did not represent a fair market value. Analysts say Iraq pitched the price low to allow for a $0.50-a-barrel surcharge to be levied from lifters, with the proceeds to be placed into a bank account outside UN control. Oil Minister Amer Rasheed said on 28 November that Iraq will defend its price formula up to the 1 December deadline, but he added that the government wished to avoid any interruption in export sales. Analysts say there are still almost 80 million barrels of unlifted contract volume left. Exports have been averaging about 2.1 million barrels a day in recent weeks. Traders say major lifters of Iraqi crude have so far refused to comply with the government's request for the $0.50-a-barrel surcharge. The State Oil Marketing Organisation (SOMO) is said to have retaliated by cutting volumes. The dispute about the terms for the UN-supervised exports is part of a wide-ranging offensive by the government, aimed at undermining the sanctions regime Source: MIDDLE EAST ECONOMIC DIGEST 08/12/2000 __ Dancing on sanctions' grave. Iraqi President Saddam Hussain has inflicted a series of body blows to the UN sanctions regime in recent months. David Butter reports on what is increasingly looking like the end-game in the 10-year battle over sanctions There was dancing in the streets of Baghdad, punctuated by shots fired into the air, as Iraqis went out on 26 November to celebrate their country's victory over Japan in the final of the Asian Youth Football Championship, held in Tehran. It was just the latest in a series of small triumphs chalked up by Iraq in its battle to break out of the isolation imposed on it through UN sanctions and become once more a force to be reckoned with in the region. The campaign to beat sanctions hit a new, invigorated stride in October this year when the Palestinian uprising created a fresh focus for anti-Western feeling in the Arab world and distracted the attention of an increasingly weary US Middle East policy team. Iraq has opened its airspace to international flights, upgraded its diplomatic ties with several Arab and European states, as well as Iran, and it has tabled a succession of demands to the UN aimed at wresting more and more control over the proceeds of its oil exports. The question uppermost in the minds of observers of Iraq as the year draws to a close is whether Saddam Hussain will continue in his recent vein of accumulating small but significant gains. If Iraq's deeds end up matching some of the rhetoric coming out of Baghdad, the oil market will be in for a rocky ride over the coming months, and the possibility of a major new regional conflict erupting cannot be ruled out. A more measured approach could see Iraq reach a point where it would have to concede very little to engineer a formal, negotiated suspension of sanctions. The most recent exercise in probing for weaknesses in the sanctions regime has involved preparing the ground for a new oil export route through Syria and attempting to levy a premium of $0.50 a barrel from companies lifting crude oil under the UN-supervised oil-for-food programme. The aim of both these ploys is to create revenue streams independent of the
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 165
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 165 Monday December 4, 2000 LATEST NEWS++ FRESH FROM ITS INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE... VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST __ Military spokesman reports US, UK sorties on 4th December. Text of report by Iraqi TV on 4th December The lofty and valiant Iraqis, led by leader President mujahid Saddam Husayn, may God watch over him, are continuing their resistance against the US and UK evil ravens. They are showing heroic determination to repulse all the lowly attempts through which the enemies of God and humanity, supported by the traitors of the Arab nation, the rulers of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait who extend direct support to those failing ravens, attack Iraq. Such attacks are an attempt to obstruct Iraq's pan-Arab role in reviving jihad to liberate Palestine and its capital, holy Jerusalem, from the claws of the filthy Zionists. A military spokesman for the Air Defence Command said in a statement to the Iraqi News Agency [INA]: At 0945 [0645gmt] today, the US and UK evil ravens desecrated the sanctity of our airspace coming from the Saudi and Kuwaiti airspace with the direct support of the ruling regimes in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. The hostile ravens carried out 12 combat sorties from the Saudi airspace and 18 combat sorties from the Kuwaiti airspace, backed by the AWACS aircraft from the Saudi airspace and an A2-C plane from the Kuwaiti airspace. They flew over areas in the governorates of Basra, Dhi Qar, Al-Muthanna, Wasit, Al-Qadisiyah, Al-Najaf and Karbala. They were confronted by our valiant missile forces which forced them to flee our airspace to the bases of evil and vice in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Thus, the number of combat sorties carried out by the enemy ravens since the Day of Conquest on 17th December 1998 up to the time of drafting this statement has reached 14,185 from the Saudi airspace and 7,632 from the Kuwaiti airspace. The spokesman added: The US and UK evil ravens today desecrated the sanctity of our airspace coming from the Turkish airspace with the direct support of the Turkish side and backed by an AWACS plane from its airspace. They carried out 18 combat sorties from the Turkish airspace and flew over areas in the governorates of Dahuk and Irbil. They were confronted by our heroic missile forces which forced them to flee our airspace to the bases of evil and aggression in Turkey. This brings to 5,644 the total number of combat sorties carried out by the ravens since the Day of Conquest on 17th December 1998 up to the time of drafting this statement. The overall number of combat sorties carried out by the ravens from the Saudi, Kuwaiti and Turkish airspace has thus far reached 27,461. ___ Iraq crude boycott targets U.S. oil import reliance. NEW YORK, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Iraq's decision to impose a crude oil export boycott on the U.S. comes at a time when America's refiners have become more dependent on Baghdad's oil than ever before. U.S. thirst for Iraqi crude has doubled in the past two years to some 750,000 barrels daily (bpd) - nine percent of total U.S. oil imports - with No.1 U.S. oil firm Exxon Mobil, the No.2 Chevron and independent refiner Premcor leading the way. Other purchasers Iraqi oil for their U.S. refineries include major BP and other leading independent refiners Koch Petroleum, Valero and Tosco. While U.S. oil companies do not have official contracts to buy Iraqi oil under the OPEC producer's oil-for-food program with the U.N., they can import quite legally through oil trading middlemen. The imports were threatened at the weekend when Iraq said it would boycott companies and countries that sold its crude oil to countries it regards as hostile. "Any company found supplying Iraqi crude to a country in a state of war with Iraq will be put on the blacklist and there will be a partial or full ban in dealing with it," said Iraqi Trade Minister Mohammed Mehdi Saleh. Although the statement did not name countries Baghdad considered hostile, it was clearly referring mainly to the United States, which led the 1991 Gulf War against Iraq. At a time when U.S. winter stocks of crude and refined products are already running low, the threats may scare some companies from importing crude, according to some buyers of Iraqi crude. "People are not buying Iraq crude because they are not going to run the risk of getting into trouble," said one oil trader. Iraq's move highlights the growing U.S. dependence on imported oil, as robust demand at home pulls away from declining domestic production. Baghdad's penetration of the U.S. oil market has now surpassed pre-Gulf War levels, when exports were averaging
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 164
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 164 Friday, December 1, 2000 LATEST NEWS++ FRESH FROM ITS INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE... VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London +LATEST Iraq halts oil exports through Turkey ANKARA, Dec 1 (AFP) - Iraq halted late Thursday oil shipments through the Turkish port of Ceyhan, a spokesman of the Turkish state oil and gas company Botas said Friday. ___ Saddam launches oil threat >From DAILY EXPRESS, December 1st, 2000 In a brazen attempt to force the West to end its sanctions, Saddam Hussein has threatened to halt oil exports this morning unless Western buyers break their own trading laws. Iraq produces 2.3million barrels a day under the United Nations-supervised oil-for-aid programme. This accounts for about one-fifth of the world's needs so an export embargo would send the price of oil soaring, triggering a new cycle of inflation and recession, some fear. Yesterday oil prices were again on the way up in spite of the mild weather in Europe and America that is easing pressure on stocks. Benchmark Brent crude rose 37 cents to $33.05 a barrel, approaching the autumn highs. Western buyers of Iraqi oil must pay for it by crediting a special escrow account supervised by the UN. But in an unexpected change of policy, Iraq said it would not ship a drop until buyers paid an illegal surcharge of 50 cents a barrel into a Jordanian bank account. Such payments are outlawed in countries which support sanctions. US energy secretary Bill Richardson said last night he thought other oil-exporting countries could plug the gap. And he pledged to release more oil from the strategic reserve if necessary. __ First commercial flight since 1990 arrives in Iraq BAGHDAD, Dec 1 (AFP) - A Royal Jordanian plane arrived in Baghdad overnight Thursday from Amman, the first commercial flight to Iraq since 1990, an aviation source said. "The plane, an Airbus A310, landed at Saddam Hussein international airport at around 2230 GMT after a flight of an hour and a half," the source told AFP. Passengers were met at the airport by leading Iraqi officials, the source added. The Airbus 310 plane left Amman's Queen Alia international airport around 11 pm local time (2100 GMT) with 29 passengers on board, including journalists. It was due to leave Baghdad for the return flight at dawn on Friday, after a brief stop in the Iraqi capital. The plane was also carrying medicines offered by Jordan "to the Iraqi brother people" which shows that the flight "which is not scheduled and is not carrying out a commercial transaction, has a humanitarian role," Jordan's deputy prime minister and transport minister, Saleh Rcheidat said Thursday. "This kind of flight is authorised by the UN sanctions committee which was informed of all the details via the (Jordanian) foreign ministry which took the necessary measures" for such cases, said Rcheidat, who had earlier said in Thursday's Al Dustur newspaper: "From our point of view, this flight is not incompatible with UN resolutions but is part of flights authorized." According to official Jordanian sources, the UN sanctions committee did "not raise an objection" to the flight. The flight had been delayed for five hours for reasons that the airline did not explain. The airline delivered tickets and accepted reservations for this first commercial flight from Amman to Baghdad, but said "it does not however mean a renewal of regular flights between Amman and Baghdad but rather charter flights of a humanitarian nature." Official Jordanian sources however said that this flight could represent "an important step" towards resuming regular flights between Amman and Baghdad, wanted by Iraq. The French foreign ministry said Thursday that Paris had no reason to think that Jordan would stray from UN rules about flights to Baghdad, but continued to consider it difficult to consider a regular air link with Iraq. Late Thursday, Rcheidat welcomed th
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 163
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 163 Thursday, November 30 2000 LATEST NEWS++ FRESH FROM ITS INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE... VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST __ Companies eye Iraq's power opportunities. The $700 million budget of the UN Development Programme's (UNDP's) electricity network rehabilitation programme (ENRP) for Iraq is attracting considerable interest from international companies hoping to secure some of the large-scale contracts scheduled to be tendered by the end of the year. At least eight engineering consultants from across the world including Europe, the US, India and Australia have been shortlisted and are in the process of preparing bids for the upgrading of transmission lines and the rehabilitation and rebuilding of substations in three northern regions. The UNDP has also called for expressions of interest by 5 December in the operation and maintenance of three 29-MW diesel power plants. The UNDP has received 15 expressions of interest for the supply of nine mini-hydro power plants. All 15 are likely to be invited to bid before the end of the year. The UNDP is responsible for the entire procurement, installation and commissioning of electrical equipment needed for the rehabilitation of the network in the three northern governorates of Irbil, Suleimaniya and Dohuk. Source: MIDDLE EAST ECONOMIC DIGEST 01/12/2000 _ Saddam Hussain makes fresh gains. President Saddam Hussain has inflicted fresh blows on the increasingly battered UN sanctions regime, by preparing to start oil exports to Syria without UN approval and demanding a surcharge on every barrel of oil exported under the UN oil-for-food programme. On 21 November both Iraq and Syria announced that the Kirkuk-Banias oil pipeline has been reopened, and will soon deliver up to 200,000 barrels a day (b/d) to the Homs and Banias refineries. Industry sources say the oil will be priced at a discount, allowing Syria to earn a premium through exporting more of its own oil. Syria now produces some 550,000 b/d. The UN says the step is not in conformity with its sanctions imposed on Baghdad. According to the UN, such an agreement would need its approval and the organisation has asked both Syria and Iraq for clarification. The UN says it has not received an official answer from either country, but has urged both of them to make sales legal under the oil-for-food-programme. In another move Iraq's state oil marketer SOMO has announced that from 1 December it will charge its customers a $0.50 premium over the official selling price in the oil-for-food export programme supervised by the UN. The payments are to be channelled to an account outside UN control. Source: MIDDLE EAST ECONOMIC DIGEST 01/12/2000 _ Russian foreign ministry says Iraq ready to discuss UN inspections. Text of report by Russian news agency RIA Moscow, 30th November: The director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Middle East and North Africa Department, Aleksandr Saltanov, said today that Baghdad is ready to start a dialogue with the United Nations. Saltanov told RIA that there was discussion at the Moscow talks between Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov and Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz of the issue of Iraq's implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1244, which envisages work by an inspections commission to check Iraq has no prohibitted military programmes. Iraq up to now has been refusing access to the commission's experts. Saltanov said that the sides in the Moscow talks drew the conclusion that the issue of resuming international monitoring in Iraq would be discussed during the Baghdad-UN dialogue. He added that major attention during the Moscow talks was devoted to Russo-Iraqi bilateral relations. "Iraq traditionally always has been a trading partner of our country", he said. The sides discussed specific aspects of the development of trade and economic relations both within the framework of humanitarian aid and for the post-sanctions period. Source: RIA news agency, Moscow, in Russian 0815 gmt 30 Nov __ Iraq's Aziz rejects new U.N. weapons inspectors. MOSCOW, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz rejected on Thursday the dispatch of new U.N. weapons inspectors to Baghdad, Russia's Interfax news agency said. Interfax quoted Aziz as saying bluntly "No" when asked whether Baghdad would accept a mission under inspector Hans Blix. Aziz was questioned at the airport, before leaving Moscow at the end of a two-day visit. Russia has called for U.N. sanctions
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 162
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 162 Tuesday, November 28, 2000 LATEST NEWS++ FRESH FROM ITS INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE... VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST LETTER TO PETER HAIN AT THE BRITISH FOREIGN OFFICE FROM GEORGE GALLOWAY MP, FOUNDER OF THE MARIAM APPEAL Peter Hain MP Minister of State Foreign and Commonwealth Office King Charles St London SW1A 2AH 27th November 2000 Dear Peter, I have been contacted by colleagues in Morocco who report that the public and media in Casablanca are seething with anger at your representative on the 661 Committee who has apparently for the past several days blocked a humanitarian flight of 55 Arab lawyers and a quantity of medicine bound for Iraq. Have you any idea - if you don't there are plenty of diplomats paid to do so - of the enmity towards Britain you are generating by actions such as these? The pattern is familiar to me. Endless questions about the precise purpose of the passengers and the details of the medicine some of which is perishable. Everyone knows this is a ruse to make things as difficult as possible for the Iraqi people with whom laughably you continue to "have no quarrel." You would be well advised to instruct your envoy to lift his veto on this flight and I give you notice that if you do not do so I will seek find parliamentary opportunities to highlight it. I hope you will see sense. Yours sincerely, George Galloway MP SAUDI CROWN PRINCE MAKES THIRD DONATION TO THE MARIAM APPEAL His Royal Highness Prince Abdullah Bin Abdel Aziz last week made his third contribution to the Mariam Appeal. The donation, of £20,000, brings the total the Crown Prince has given to the appeal £75,000 in just over two years. __ Iraqi leader's trip marks consolidation of ties. By The Times of India News Service. NEW DELHI: India is rolling out the red carpet for Iraqi vice-president Taha Yassin Ramadhan during his five-day official visit here. India will "like to see some positive action" from the global community in the United Nations towards lifting sanctions against Iraq. External affairs minister Jaswant Singh has already called for lifting the sanctions in tandem with Iraq complying with various UN resolutions. Ramadhan, with a 17-member delegation including oil minister Amer Mohammed Rashid, arrived in the Capital on Monday evening to renew high-level bilateral political contacts and give a new impetus to economic cooperation. "This is the highest-level visit ever from Iraq to India in the last 25 years... We have close relations with Iraq and are deeply concerned about the humanitarian angle there, especially the high mortality rate of children," said an external affairs ministry spokesperson. In keeping with the "close ties" between the two countries, a "long-term cooperation agreement" to consolidate bilateral ties will be signed during the visit. An MoU between the Confederation of Indian Industry and Iraqi Federation of Industry is also expected to be finalised. The Indo-Iraq Joint Commission will also meet to discuss several areas, including trade and commerce, agriculture, housing and construction, among other things. __ Iraqi vice premier not in Moscow despite previous report. Text of report by Russia TV on 28 November Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz is expected in Moscow tonight. He will meet Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov. The main issue on the meeting agenda will be looking for the ways of solving Iraqi crisis and lifting the embargo against Iraq imposed by the UN 10 years ago. Source: Russia TV channel, Moscow, in Russian 0800 gmt 28 Nov 00. __ Iraq asks UN to allocate oil cash to Palestinians . Dubai (Platt's)-27Nov2000/1153 pm EST/453 GMT Iraqi Foreign Minister Mohammed Sahaf has written to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan formally requesting that a portion of funds from Iraqi oil sales under the UN-monitored oil-for-food program be allocated to Palestinians, the official Iraqi news agency INA reported Tuesday. INA, which published the text of the letter, said Sahaf told Annan that the Palestinians deserved the full support of the Arab and Iraqi nations in their struggle against, "the criminal Zionist acts against them." Sahaf added: "The government of Iraq asks you officially to allocate a share of the memorandum of understanding of 20/5/1996 between Iraq and the UN to the people of Palestine to support its national stand. A share of Iraqi funds is a legitimate right of the Palestinians to support their defence of t
Bitter fruit from seeds of hate - Excellent Column on the US Policy towards Iraq
Bitter fruit from seeds of hate By Charley Reese Commentary Published in The Orlando Sentinel on November 26, 2000 Most Americans don't realize how heinous our own government has been in its foreign policy. The Sunday Herald, a Scottish newspaper, last September reported that the United States and its allies deliberately destroyed Iraq's water supply and in the nine years since have deliberately prevented it from being repaired by keeping out the equipment and chemicals necessary. A Georgetown University professor has obtained a seven-page document, prepared by the Defense Intelligence Agency, that pointed out the vulnerability of the water system, its dependence on imported equipment and chemicals, and the likely consequences of its destruction. The report was dead accurate. The United States and its allies destroyed the system. The Sunday Herald reported that eight multipurpose dams were repeatedly bombed, smashing the infrastructure for flood control, municipal and industrial water storage, irrigation and hydroelectric power. Four of Iraq's seven major pumping stations were destroyed, as were 31 municipal water and sewage facilities. The result: Water-borne diseases -- typhoid, dysentery, hepatitis, cholera and polio -- have killed thousands of civilians in Iraq. There is always a rough justice in the universe, however. The Sunday Times has reported that tens of thousands of American and British troops are suffering from radiation poisoning from the depleted uranium shells fired during the Gulf War. No wonder both governments are trying to deny that Gulf War Syndrome even exists. The water-supply system, which we attacked, had absolutely nothing to do with supplying or supporting the Iraqi troops in Kuwait. It was a deliberate, cold-blooded attack, intended to kill and sicken Iraqi civilians. It was a war crime. People who like to yap about the rule of law should see to it that their own government obeys the law. The new president of Yugoslavia has our number when it comes to the rule of law. He said, "Washington introduced into the rule of law everything that is opposed to the rule of law: voluntarianism, insecurity and arbitrariness." It's one thing to knock out communications towers, bridges and ammunition dumps, but a city's sewer and water system has nothing to do with the military. Taking those out seems more malicious than any American would be capable of -- unless you've met some of the unthinking automatons and some of the heartless sharks who infect the Beltway. They flit around like wraiths, whispering their poisonous malice into the ears of the office holders. It would be comforting to imagine that one day the American people will elect to public office men and women who make clear to the world that we do not make war on women and children. Unfortunately, I fear that the cruelty and disregard for human life and human rights is a reflection of the American people's own attitudes. So long as the victims are "the others" -- foreigners -- most Americans don't seem to give a flip what is done to them. One hates to keep returning to the universal wisdom of religion, but what one sows one reaps. Our government has, in our name, been sowing hate, and one day we will reap the fruit of that hate. It will be bitter fruit. It will not be much consolation, if one day someone poisons our water supply, to know that that person got the idea from the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency. We need a new, more benign emperor in our Rome on the Potomac.
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 161
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 161 Monday, November 27 2000 LATEST NEWS++VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST _ Iraqis celebrate Asian youth cup victory. BAGHDAD, Nov 26 (Reuters) - Baghdad was in jubilant mood on Sunday after its Asian youth football victory. Hundreds of young people took to the streets in the evening to celebate their country's 2-1 win against Japan, handing Iraq the title at the Asian Youth Football Championship in Tehran. Carrying Iraqi flags, the celebrators crowded the main streets of the capital, singing and dancing as shots were fired into the air. Iraq's youth team has won the Asian title four times - in 1975, 1977 and 1988. The team qualified this year after heading their group four on goal aggregate. The group included Bangladesh, Nepal and the Maldives. __ India and Iraq seek UN permission to enter into a barter agreement. NEW DELHI Nov. 25. - India has sought clearance from the United Nations (UN),to enter into a barter agreement with Iraq, seeking crude in lieu of foodgrains. India will supply Iraq with food, in an effort to bypass the sanctions imposed on that country by the international community. The Petroleum Minister, Mr Ram Naik, disclosed this after a preliminary meeting with the Iraqi Oil Minister, Mr Amer Mohammad Rashid, in New Delhi today, prior to the five-day visit of Iraq's Vice-President, Mr Yassin Ramadhan, beginning tomorrow. "The issue will be discussed during the meeting of the Indo-Iraq joint commission beginning on Monday," Mr Naik said. "Since Iraq is facing sanctions from the international community, it is not possible for India to import oil," Mr Naik said, adding that foodgrains could be sent on humanitarian grounds. According to the foreign ministry, it is anticipated that this time long term cooperation agreement, updating previous agreements, will take place on bilateral issues. There are currently about 74 bilateral agreements between the two countries. The Indo-Iraq joint commission is expected to focus on trade and sectors like agriculture, telecom, food production, industry, information and technology, housing and construction and training. The oil sector is, however, a primary component of bilateral cooperation, and Iraq has been a consistent and dependable source of India's energy requirements. Under the 'oil for food' programme, Indian companies, including Bharat Heavy Electrical Limited (Bhel), have already entered into contracts worth $550 million. Iraq has thus far bought half a million tons of wheat from India. Indian government godowns are totally stacked with foodgrain stocks and it would greatly ease the pressure on foreign exchange (Forex) reserves, if India could dispose of some of these foodgrains for much needed crude. India has sought special concessions for developing countries from the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec), of which Iraq is a member, claiming that volatile international oil prices exerts tremendous pressure on developing economies struggling to remove poverty. All Material Subject to Copyright Copyright 2000: The Statesman (India). All Rights Reserved. _ Vice-President Ramadan urges airlines to resume flights to Baghdad. Text of report by Iraqi TV on 26th November Vice-President Taha Yasin Ramadan left Baghdad for India this evening aboard an Iraqi Airways plane. Ramadan is leading a delegation that comprises a number of officials. [Baghdad TV reporter Sham'un Matti - recording] Mr Vice-President: Would you tell us about the nature of the visit you will pay to India and the talks you will hold with officials there? [Ramadan] Relations with India have witnessed over the past two years progress in many fields, following our meeting with the Indian prime minister in South Africa on the sidelines of the nonaligned summit. The work of the joint ministerial committee became regular; many contracts were signed; and contacts were held between both countries' parliaments and organizations. The talks between senior officials dealt with economic, scientific, technical and even political issues. In the light of this, we received an invitation from the [Indian] vice-president to discuss with the Indian prime minister and leaders all aspects of cooperation between the two countries. Therefore, we will discuss the general framework of a long-term agreement for cooperation between the two countries in all fields. [Matti] You will leave on board an Iraqi Airways plane. Yesterday, Tariq Aziz left on board an Iraqi Airways plane. Is this tantamount to an official announcement on the resumptio
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 160
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 160 Friday, November 24, 2000 LATEST NEWS++VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST ___ Iraq May Be Reopening Oil Pipeline to Syria, Violating U.N. Embargo. The possible reopening of an oil pipeline between Iraq and Syria, coupled with recent Iraqi efforts to get a portion of its oil revenue directly from buyers, represents yet another challenge by Baghdad of the 10-year-old United Nations trade embargo. Oil has been flowing between Iraq and Syria in recent days, but how much remains unclear, an industry person familiar with Iraq said. Both Damascus and Baghdad have denied reports that the pipeline is carrying 150,000 barrels a day. One person close to the Syrian oil industry said oil was pumped but only to test the pipeline, and it wasn't for export. Iraq says it is "simply taking the necessary measures to get it ready for the eventual export of oil," U.N. spokesman Fred Eckhard said. The Syrian mission in New York denied importing oil through the pipeline, Mr. Eckhard added. Britain, nevertheless, has asked for an urgent meeting of the U.N. sanctions committee on Iraq to take up the matter of the Syrian pipeline, and also the recent gift of an airplane to Iraq from a Qatari national. British officials said the gift violated sanctions barring countries from selling or supplying such goods to Iraqi leadership. A British official in New York said his government has told Damascus it may purchase Iraqi crude only if the proceeds are placed under U.N. control. "If the oil is pumped without the proceeds going through oil-for-food [the U.N. program], it's illegal," the official said. Source: WALL STREET JOURNAL 24/11/2000 Iraq threatens again. IRAQ threatened on Thursday to halt its United Nations-authorised oil exports unless the UN sanctions committee lifted its "holds" on Baghdad's import contracts. "We, the Iraqi people, are thinking seriously that...we should stop exporting oil, at least until the 661 (sanctions) committee releases the 'on-hold' Iraq contracts so that we can benefit from our exported oil," the official daily Baghdad Observer said in an editorial. The paper was referring to the UN oil-for-aid programme under which Iraq is authorised to export crude under strict UN supervision to finance imports of essential goods. "If the world community doesn't feel its responsibility towards Iraq's suffering, why should Iraq feel responsible for the expected oil price increase in case it stopped exporting?" asked the daily. "Why should Iraq continue exporting its oil while the revenues are being directed away from its people? Are we exporting oil to pay compensations and UN salaries?" it asked. A third of the revenues from the oil exports are deducted to pay compensation for the 1991 Gulf War, which evicted Iraqi occupation from Kuwait, and to finance UN operations in Iraq. The daily charged that the oil-for-aid deal, which Baghdad accepted reluctantly but only as a temporary measure while pressing for a total lifting of sanctions, had turned into "a permanent UN measure crippling Iraq and harming its people." (c) The Hindu Business Line. LIFTING OF IRAQ SANCTIONS NOT PROFITABLE FOR RUSSIA - SHOKHIN. MOSCOW. Nov 23 (Interfax) - The lifting of sanctions against Iraq will not be profitable for Russia, Duma Deputy Alexander Shokhin said at a conference on the oil industry and its role in expanding production, on Thursday. Announcements that the lifting of sanctions against Iraq will give Russia the possibility of receiving many billions in debts and benefiting from participation in restoring the Iraqi oil industry are groundless, he said. Shokhin said that the main source of Iraqi revenue is oil exports. If these exports are not regulated by international sanctions, a glut of crude will appear on the market, which will lead to falling world oil prices and, consequently, a reduction in Russian revenue from crude exports," he said. The deputy stressed that he is not calling for sanctions against Iraq to be tightened, but at the same time he is recommending that we do not rush to lift them. Since the Gulf War in 1990, the UN Security Council sanctions committee has regulated exports of Iraqi oil. According to Bloomberg Energy, Iraq exports on average about 2.5 million barrels of oil per day. Export revenue is used to carry out humanitarian supplies to Iraq and also to pay reparation. Commenting on the issue of Russia joining OPEC, Shokhin noted that the current position of the government, whereby Russia supports the decisions of the cartel without joining it, is correc
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 159
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 159 Thursday, November 23 2000 LATEST NEWS++VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST __ Iran joins Arab rush to Baghdad. Iraq and Iran have stepped up efforts to restore full diplomatic relations. The moves by the two countries, which went to war between 1980 and 1988, coincide with plans by Syria and Egypt to upgrade ties. Egypt said in early November flags would fly at the respective missions reopened at the charge d'affaires level. Several senior-level meetings have been held between Iran and Iraq and a transport and communications agreement was signed on 6 November. Iranian officials have also suggested that any Iraqi request for a return of Iraqi Airways planes, which took refuge across the border during the 1991 Gulf war, will be considered favourably, provided the UN sanctions committee gives its approval. Some 50 Iranian firms attended the November Baghdad international trade fair. Several firms said they had orders for hundreds of tractors and cranes, although transactions would need UN approval. Most of Iraqi Airways' fleet of US-built aircraft took refuge in Iran in 1991. The aircraft have been gathering dust at various airports across the country, and technical difficulties might prevent their return. Middle East Economic Digest _ US weather and Iraqi demands encourage markets. Oil prices were in mid-November threatening to return to their recent highs on predictions of cold weather in the US and fears that Iraq may hold back some exports. The upward trend was encouraged by a decision by OPEC ministers on 13 November to postpone a decision on output levels until 17 January. OPEC also elected a new secretary-general for the next three years (see Seven Days). A cold front was in mid-November heading for the US northeast, where heating oil stocks are about 40 per cent below 1999 levels. The US remains concerned about supply shortages despite views by market analysts and by OPEC that crude supplies would exceed demand in the coming months. OPEC ministers have expressed fears that continued production increases could bring about a market collapse after the winter. Some ministers have said output cuts may be required in the second quarter of 2001, to keep prices within the preferred range of $22-28 a barrel. Iraq, which supplies about 5 per cent of the world's crude exports, informed its customers in mid-month that from 1 December it wants a $0.50 premium paid on each barrel of crude outside the UN-controlled accounts. Most oil companies say they will be unable to comply with the demand because it would mean circumventing UN sanctions. Middle East Economic Digest _ INDIA APPROACHES UN ON FOODGRAIN/OIL EXCHANGE WITH IRAQ. NEW DELHI, Nov 23, Asia Pulse - India has approached the United Nations for permission to exchange foodgrains for oil with Iraq, which is facing sanctions from the international community, federal petroleum and natural gas minister Ram Naik says. Replying to a supplementary during Question Hour, the minister said since Iraq was facing sanctions from the international community, it was not possible for India to import crude oil from that country. However, food and grain could be exchanged on humanitarian grounds and India had approached the UN in this regard, Naik said. _ Iraq threatens to stop UN-authorized oil exports. Baghdad (AFP)-23Nov2000/318 am EST/818 GMT Iraq threatened Thursday to halt its UN-authorised oil exports unless the UN sanctions committee lifted its "holds" on Baghdad's import contracts. "We, the Iraqi people, are thinking seriously that...we should stop exporting oil, at least until the 661 (sanctions) committee releases the 'on-hold' Iraq contracts so that we can benefit from our exported oil," said the "Baghdad Observer". The official daily, in an editorial, was referring to the UN oil-for-food program under which Iraq is authorized to export crude under strict UN supervision to finance imports of essential goods. The program, launched in December 1996, is run in six-monthly phases, the latest of which expires on Dec 5. __ Iran armed opposition unit arrested near Iraq. Tehran (AFP)-23Nov2000/222 am EST/722 GMT A team of Iran's main armed opposition group, the People's Mujahedeen, was arrested by intelligence officials in the western Lorestan province close to Iraq, the official IRNA news agency reported Thursday. According to the report, the team had "intended to create unrest" in the city of Borujerd on N
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 158
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 158 Tuesday, November 21, 2000 LATEST NEWS++VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 13a Borough High Street, London+LATEST __ Patrols to avoid Iraqi civil aircraft. US Department of Defense spokesman Kenneth Bacon announced on 7 November that US and UK pilots patrolling 'no-fly zones' in Iraq have made "appropriate changes" to avoid accidentally shooting down Iraqi civilian aircraft. Volume 034/021 (c) Jane's Information Group Limited 2000. __ Iraq confronts U.N. with oil sales to Syria. DUBAI, Nov 21 (Reuters) - Iraq has begun pumping oil through a pipeline to Syria, apparently outside the terms of the United Nations oil-for-food arrangement. A Syrian oil official said that about 150,000 barrels a day of Iraqi crude was flowing through the line, disused since 1982. "Iraq started pumping on November 16 and the flow is now up to about 150,000 barrels per day of Basrah Light," the official told Reuters by telephone from Damascus. Iraq earlier this month vowed to start selling crude to Syria in what appears to be part of a sustained effort by Baghdad to break the straitjacket of U.N. Gulf War sanctions. Oil-for-food allows Iraq to sell as much crude as it likes in return for humanitarian goods as long as the revenues remain under strict U.N. control. Iraq's customers pay direct into an escrow account in New York with 30 percent of the proceeds earmarked for Gulf War reparations. Washington has said it does not object to sales via Syria as long as the revenues remain under U.N. control. The Syrian oil source said the crude was moving into storage tanks at Syria's Homs and Banias refineries but had not yet been processed. Iraq has been exporting about 2.3 million barrels daily via export terminals on its Gulf coast and through Turkey, both monitored on behalf of the U.N. by Dutch agent Saybolt. "We've been in intense discussion with the government in Damascus," Richard Roth, U.S. principal deputy assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs told Reuters in New York last week. "We are not opposed to oil going through the pipeline as long as it meets the export regime controls," Roth added. "As long as the money is put into the U.N. system we don't have a problem." Iraq has not notified the United Nations of the possible reopening of the pipeline, U.N. officials said last week. Iraq aims to eventually stabilise the pipeline throughput at 200,000 bpd said and there we no immediate plans to increase flows beyond that level, the Syrian official said. Industry sources said Syria will purchase the Iraqi crude oil at a discount to international oil prices and will be able to sell the equivalent amount of its own Syrian Light crude oil at world oil prices. When asked whether Damascus would start exporting the equivalent amount of Syrian Light immediately the official said "we have one or two extra cargoes for November." Lifters of Syrian crude said they had not been offered firm additional barrels of oil on top of November or December term volumes, which have already been confirmed. "They have expressed to us the possibility that they may have additional volumes but they have not offered anything," said one trader at a European company. Baghdad already is allowed to sell some oil direct to its neighbour Jordan outside the terms of oil-for-food. Iraq has raised a number of other issues with the United Nations on oil-for-food. They include the demand that buyers pay an extra 50 cents over official selling prices into an account outside U.N. control. __ Russia lost USD 30bn through sanctions. MOSCOW, Nov 21 /Prime-TASS/ - Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov has written to UN Secretary General Kofi Annan detailing real and potential losses sustained by Russia from ten years of sanctions against Iraq. Speaking on Russia's ORT television channel on Monday, he said the losses totaled some USD 30 bln. These are real losses and it is natural that we would like the sanctions to be lifted as soon as possible... Our stand is not based on purely selfish interests. The sanctions should be lifted to end the suffering of the Iraqi people in the first place. At the same time, when taking this or that step in the sphere of foreign policy, the first thing we should take into consideration is our own interests, including economic and financial ones," Ivanov said. The minister visited Baghdad on November 13-14 and discussed with Iraqi leaders how to end the economic embargo. According to diplomatic sources, Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz will visit Moscow on November 25. They said Aziz and Russian officials would contin
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 157
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 157 Monday, November 20, 2000 LATEST NEWS++VHS copies of the film 'Big Ben to Baghdad', the epic account of last year's journey in a 37-year-old Routemaster bus from London to the capital of sanctions-engulfed Iraq. The 65-minute-film costs £9.99 from the Mariam Appeal, 31a Borough High Street, London SE1 9SE LATEST Iraqi shortfall `will be made up'. OIL: United States Energy Secretary Bill Richardson said yesterday he was not concerned about crude supply shortages in the event of a disruption of Iraqi oil supplies, saying they could be made up by other producers, reports Reuters. Failing that, the United States or the West's energy watchdog, the International Energy Agency, which has stocks of its own, could top up the market, he added. "We do believe that Gulf countries or IEA countries or the United States could make up that shortfall (caused by Iraqi disruption)," Mr Richardson said during a conference of oil producing and consuming nations in the Saudi capital Riyadh. "I think the first option would be the Gulf states filling in that gap." Iraq has called for a surcharge of 50 US cents per barrel and another charge of 1.50 euros per barrel to offset oil production costs. Source: SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST 20/11/2000 ___ Saudi Arabia says Iraq should comply with UN. RIYADH, Nov. 19 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia would be the first to call for an end to U.N. sanctions against Iraq and bring it back into the Arab fold if it complied with U.N. resolutions, Saudi Defence Minister Prince Sultan bin Abdullah Al-Aziz said on Sunday. If Iraq complied with U.N. Security Council resolutions, "then you can be sure that we would be the first people to call for lifting sanctions on Iraq," Sultan said at a joint press conference with U.S. Defence Secretary William Cohen. Cohen, on a nine-stop tour of the Gulf and Middle East, has been reiterating U.S. policy that U.N. sanctions on Iraq should continue unless Iraq allows weapons inspectors to return. "And when we are certain that Iraq is doing so, and does not have incorrect weapons, then Iraq will be a friendly brother country," Sultan said, according to a U.S. embassy translator. In his last visit to the region as defence secretary, Cohen also met King Fahd and Crown Prince Abdullah with whom he discussed the Middle East peace process, U.S. elections, and terrorism. Asked whether he was comfortable with the amount of U.S. military presence in Saudi Arabia, Sultan replied: "We don't have any American troops in the Kingdom." "What we have now is only the embargo planes which were put in place by the coalition countries," for patrolling the Western imposed no-fly zone in southern Iraq, he said. "The aim of these planes is not aggression against Iraq, but to serve peace and stability in Iraq and the neighbouring countries," Sultan said. Saudi Arabia is currently not considering any new weapons deals, Sultan said. "We are not thinking of any new weapons deals. We are now thinking to build Saudi society scientifically and industrially and agriculturally and commercially. Saudi Arabia has enough to defend itself." Asked whether he believed U.S. foreign policy favoured Israel over the Palestinians, Sultan replied: "I think the U.S. under the leadership of President Clinton is seeking world peace, especially in the Middle East. The question of who is biased or not biased is not a useful question. It has no use to anybody." Cohen's trip to the region comes at a time of rising discontent among Arab states which perceive the United States as showing a bias toward Israel in the confrontation with the Palestinians. "There was a clear sense of concern on both sides that we have to find a solution to this crisis in order to prevent it from getting worse," Pentagon spokesman Ken Bacon said after Cohen's meeting with Abdullah. "The Secretary represented that he thought this was serious and that everybody in the region should work hard to bring the Palestinians and Israelis to the peace table," Bacon said. "I would say that based on the countries I've been to to date, and those that I will visit the next several days, that our standing in the Gulf region is still very high," Cohen said. "We enjoy support for the contribution we make to peace and stability and prosperity throughout the Gulf region," he said. The leaders also discussed the U.S. election, which is so close that no winner has been declared nearly two weeks after ballots were cast. Cohen has been assuring leaders on this trip that no matter who wins, the United States would remain committed to its ties in the region. Since the Oct. 12 attack on the U.S. destroyer Cole at the Yemeni port of Aden in which 17 American sailors died, U.S. troops have been on heightened alert, with the nearly 11,000 U.S. service personnel in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Qatar on the highest level of alert.
SEND A RAMADAN GREETING OR A CHRISTMAS CARD TO IRAQ
Forwarded on behalf of Mel Lehman SEND A HOLIDAY CARD TO IRAQ The people of Iraq will spend this Ramadan and Christmas malnourished, sick, unemployed and impoverished because of a decade of U.S.-backed sanctions. I will travel to Iraq to deliver your personal greeting for Ramadan or Christmas. You can send a Ramadan greeting to one of the Muslims there or a Christmas card to one of the nearly one million Christians in Iraq or to let them know that they have not been forgotten by the outside world. And you can write to one of your representatives in Washington. Dear Friend, here's how you can participate: 1. Include the people of Iraq in your prayers this Ramadan and Christmas. 2. Sign your name on a greeting for Ramadan or a Christmas card. You may include a one sentence greeting but DO NOT INCLUDE ANYTHING OF A POLITICAL NATURE. IF YOU DO SO, I WILL UNFORTUNATELY NOT BE ABLE TO DELIVER YOUR CARD. This year Ramadan coincides closely with Christmas and you also may want to send Ramadan greetings. To do so, sign your name on a blank museum-type card with flowers or a landscape on it. Again, you may include a one-sentence greeting and sign your name but I will not be able to deliver your card if you include anything of a political nature. 3. Send it to me: Mel Lehman, 310 Riverside Drive, #511, New York, NY 10025 by December 10, 2000. PLEASE NOTE THE LIMITED TIME. It is not necessary, but if you wish you may also include a contribution for costs involved with this project. A suggested donation is 50¢ per card. I will use part of the money for Christmas and Ramadan presents of fresh fruit. Any money received beyond those expenses will be used to continue publishing The Children of Iraq newsletter. If you have questions, contact me at [EMAIL PROTECTED] or call me at 212/865-6115. 4. For each card that you send, write a letter to Washington asking President Clinton or your Senator or U.S. Representative to show some respect to the people of Iraq and end the economic sanctions because they are hurting the most vulnerable people, especially the children. Send your letter to: President William J. Clinton The White House Washington, DC 20500 Senator ___ U. S. Senate Washington, DC 20510 Representative___ U.S. House of Representatives Washington, DC 20515 5. AND REMEMBER THE DEADLINE: DECEMBER 10, 2000 so I can personally deliver your cards to Iraq in time for Christmas and Ramadan. Thank you. Mel Lehman
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 156
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 156 Thursday, November 16, 2000 NEWS LATEST++TONIGHT+TONIGHT+++TONIGHT GEORGE GALLOWAY MP will be hosting the premiere of the Big Ben to Baghdad bus film tonight - that is, if he isn't locked up for breaking sanctions! As ISM subscribers knew first, George - together with Catholic priest Noel Barry, hereditary peer Lord Rea and five others - blew a hole in 10 years of British sanctions against Iraq by flying into the country from Britain. This is the first flight from Britain since sanctions were imposed a decade ago. George will be flying back from Jordan today and will launch the 60-minute film at the Brunei Theatre in the School of Oriental and African Studies in London at 6.30pm on Thursday. Be there to celebrate ___ INVITATION The Arab Club of Britain announces the premiere showing of the film "Big Ben to Baghdad". The epic journey through three continents, ten countries and 15,000 miles from London to Baghdad in a veteran double-decker London Routemaster bus. The Mariam Appeal chairman Mr. George Galloway MP will be joined by politician Tony Benn MP and Sabah Al-Mukhtar, President of the Arab Lawyers Association for debate following the film. The film will be shown at the Brunei Theater at the School of Oriental and African Studies SOAS, at 630 p.m. on Thursday, 16th November, 2000. Nearest Tube station is Russell Square, London WC1 Admission free but donations are welcome _ Czech ministry reveals participants in secret mission to Iraq - daily. Text of report in English by the Czech news agency CTK Prague, 16th November: The Czech Foreign Ministry has revealed the names of participants in a widely criticized mission to embargoed Iraq in January, which it organized, the daily `Lidove noviny' writes today. Deputy Foreign Minister Hynek Kmonicek, who took part in the mission together with Prime Minister Milos Zeman's aid Miroslav Slouf, told the daily that Pavel Tkacik and Jiri Lukes from the Vitkovice joint-stock company, Ladislav Baranek for ZTS Petroleum and Stampa, controversial Czech-American entrepreneur Milan Jedlicka and an unnamed representatives of a big company from Prague took part in the trade mission. The mission was to help especially the Vitkovice company come to an agreement with Iraq on paying back outstanding debts. "No agreement in which Iraq would admit its debts has been signed so far," Kmonicek said adding that it is no longer necessary to keep the composition of the mission secret. The ministry has changed its approach after Foreign Minister Jan Kavan faced the accusation of hiding information on the Iraq mission, the daily writes. "By revealing the information, they have admitted that they breached the law. It is scandalous that Kavan lied to the public for almost one year. I expect him to apologize," Senator Michal Zantovsky, who filed the suit, said. He said that he however would not withdraw it because the name of the Prague entrepreneur had been kept secret. Slouf took part in the mission to confirm to Zeman that Iraqis want unacceptable concessions in exchange for the Czech Republic's participation in the renewal of damaged refineries. Slouf proposed participants in the mission. Jedlicka who represents the US company Magna Oil was to be the one who trades in oil, has contacts in the UN and can place Iraqi oil at the world market, according to Kmonicek. Though Lukes confirms Jedlicka's participation in the mission, Jedlicka himself denies it. Baranek confirmed already in September that he had participated in the mission. Source: CTK news agency, Prague, in English 0831 gmt 16 Nov _ Iraq resumes oil exports from Turkey after delays. LONDON, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Iraqi oil exports from the Turkish port of Ceyhan have resumed after being suspended for three days due to delays in issuing letters of credit (LCs) based in euros, said industry sources on Thursday. One vessel is due to finish loading late afternoon on Thursday local time and another around 4.00 am (0200 GMT) on Friday morning, they said. "There are more ships waiting there turn," the source said but added that problems with LCs continued. The delay in crude oil tanker loadings since last Sunday was caused by problems with issuing letters of credit, which last week switched from being based in U.S. dollars to euros. "It looks to be an internal problem at the bank backing the euro LCs... They have been unable to confirm it," said one trader. "It's a bit confusing, even to the lifters." One trader said he had supplied a dollar-based letter of credit for a lifting last week, with a promise that final payment would be in euros. But it seems new LCs are now required in euros, trading sources said. Last Tuesday, Ceyhan crude loadings were suspended for about 24 hours, also because of payment iss
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 154
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 154 Monday, November 13, 2000. ___ NEWS LATEST++GEORGE GALLOWAY MP will be hosting the premiere of the Big Ben to Baghdad bus film on Thursday - that is, if he isn't locked up for breaking sanctions! As ISM subscribers knew first, George - together with Catholic priest Noel Barry, hereditary peer Lord Rea and five others - blew a hole in 10 years of British sanctions against Iraq by flying into the country from Britain. This is the first flight from Britain since sanctions were imposed a decade ago. George will be flying back from Jordan on Thursday and will launch the 60-minute film at the Brunei Theatre in the School of Oriental and African Studies in London at 6.30pm on Thursday. Be there to celebrate ___ INVITATION The Arab Club of Britain announces the premiere showing of the film "Big Ben to Baghdad". The epic journey through three continents, ten countries and 15,000 miles from London to Baghdad in a veteran double-decker London Routemaster bus. The Mariam Appeal chairman Mr. George Galloway MP will be joined by politician Tony Benn MP and Sabah Al-Mukhtar, President of the Arab Lawyers Association for debate following the film. The film will be shown at the Brunei Theater at the School of Oriental and African Studies SOAS, at 630 p.m. on Thursday, 16th November, 2000. Nearest Tube station is Russell Square, London WC1 Admission free but donations are welcome Russian foreign minister leaves for Iraq. Moscow, 13th November: Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov left for the Middle East today. He begins his tour with a visit to Baghdad where he intends to discuss Russian initiatives aimed at resolving the Iraqi situation... Source: ITAR-TASS news agency, Moscow, in Russian 0800 gmt 13 November 00. _ JWA TO UNDERTAKE CULTURAL AID FLIGHT TO IRAQ. According to "Jordan Times", the Jordan Writers Association (JWA) is organizing a charter flight to Baghdad on Nov. 14 in solidarity with sanctions-crippled Iraq, the first such move by an Arab cultural organization in 10 years. The plane will carry some 168 intellectuals from the JWA including members of various cultural committees and needed cultural aid to the Iraqi people such as books, magazines and computers, the JWA president revealed. The flight will return to Jordan the same day. _ Iraq flight - News in brief. THE first flight from Greece to Iraq in a decade has landed in Baghdad with 100 passengers in a show of solidarity. Medecins Sans Frontieres had UN approval. Source: SUNDAY TIMES 12/11/2000 __ Dealing With Iraq. One of the first foreign policy challenges that the next president will encounter upon assuming office is Iraq. The economic sanctions and "no-fly" zones that the Clinton administration has long claimed have locked Saddam Hussein in a "box from which he cannot escape" have all but collapsed in recent weeks. The next administration will have to consider not the renewal - but a major overhaul - of Iraq policy to restore American credibility in the region It is no secret that international community's will to maintain the American-backed sanctions against Iraq has steadily evaporated. Except for Britain, all U.S. allies have expressed reservation about a policy that has brought starvation to the Iraqi people while leaving Saddam firmly in control. Indeed, the food-for-oil deal that the United States agreed to for humanitarian reasons in the aftermath of the Gulf War has become a conduit for sympathetic powers to send vast quantities of shipments to Baghdad. Meanwhile, the United States moved to relax the oil embargo against Iraq when oil prices started to climb a few months ago. But the clearest sign that Saddam Hussein has escaped from his "box" came last week when he resumed domestic flights in defiance of the U.S. and British no-fly zones. Too, his bid to reopen oil pipelines to Syria and Jordan have attracted business - not condemnation - from the rest of the world: Seven countries, including U.S. ally Turkey, last week flew officials and businessmen to Baghdad for the opening of a trade fair. But even as the Clinton administration's policy of containment has been unraveling, both George W. Bush and Al Gore have been pledging to redouble their commitment to it. Mr. Bush has promised to change the "no-fly zones" to "no-move zones." And Mr. Gore has vowed to do whatever is necessary to remove Saddam from power. But such pronouncements are misguided. They imply that the containment policy can be made to work if it is more efficiently implemented. In fact, the problem with containment is deeper. Economic sanctions and "no fly" zones paralyze not the regime, their i
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 153
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 153 Friday, November 10, 2000 HISTORIC EDITIONHISTORY IS MADE LATEST+Galloway and crew break the British sanctions embargo with daring early-morning flight into IraqLATEST _ First British Sanctions-Buster Lands in Baghdad The first peaceful British flight in more than a decade defied the government and touched down in Iraq at around 4.30am, GMT, today (Friday). On board the plane were the Labour MP - and Mariam Appeal founder - George Galloway and seven others, including the hereditary peer Lord Rea and the Catholic priest, Father Noel Barry. The plane, an Air Dassault Falcon 50, flew under the cover of darkness and subterfuge from Manston airfield in Kent. The sanctions-busting flight was paid for by private donations to the Mariam Appeal. The flight was deliberately not a humanitarian one - no drugs or other supplies were on board - but was intended to focus world attention on the plight of the people of Iraq. "We don't accept that there are any legal UN sanction against passenger flights into Iraq, as the British and American governments maintain, but I do accept that we have committed an offence in Britain by not informing the DTi of our flight plan or allowing inspectors to check out the plane" said George Galloway. "I hope that the government won't take action against us but if they do then we'll relish our days in court." At the same time as the plane landed a letter giving details of the flight was being handed in to the Foreign Office minister Peter Hain. The letter, from George Galloway, says in part: "We have made this journey to demonstrate the widespread and growing opposition in the United Kingdom to the continuing embargo...As you know, my view is that there is no requirement for any UN Sanctions Committee approval for this flight and there is no breach of any international legal requirement." The British Foreign Office, in an embarrassing volte face on previous policy, latger claimed that the flight had 'exploited a loophole' in the sanctions regulations. George is expected to stay in Iraq for several days before traveling back to Britain, overland, for the premiere of the Mariam Appeal film, Big Ben to Baghdad, on November 16. The film will be shown at the School of Oriental and African Studies at 6.30pm. _ Indian MPs ask Annan to lift curbs on Iraq >From THE TIMES OF INDIA, November 10th, 2000 NEW DELHI: Cutting across party lines, 129 MPs from both Houses on Thursday urged UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan to lift the UN embargo on Iraq. Mulayam Singh Yadav, Indrajit Gupta, Mayawati, Jaipal Reddy and S.R. Bommai are some of the prominent signatories of the letter which was sent to Annan. The MPs in their letter have referred to a shocking UNICEF study which reported that the UN embargo has resulted in the death of over five lakh children under the age of five in Iraq. Other independent studies by US, French and British NGOs also pointed out that lakhs of Iraqi citizens have died of shortage of food and medicine in the wake of UN sanctions, the MPs argued. Despite Iraq complying with the UN resolutions, the embargo continues at a ``horrible human cost,'' the MPs said expressing grave concern, and sought an end to the periodical attacks against Iraq which violate principles of sovereignty and independence of Iraq. They said the sanctions have crippled one of the richest nations of West Asia. ___ Britons fly to Iraq to protest sanctions. LONDON, Nov 10 (Reuters) - A group of British politicians and a Roman Catholic priest flew to Baghdad on Friday in what they said was the first peaceful British flight to Iraq in a decade to protest decade-old U.N. sanctions. The flight followed similar flights from Arab and non-Arab countries. It was not approved by the British government and did not carry humanitarian aid. Like previous anti-sanction flights, the eight-strong British delegation exploited a loophole in a 1990 U.N. Security Council resolution on the sanctions. "We don't accept that there are any U.N. sanctions against passenger flights into Iraq as British and American governments maintain," George Galloway, a member of parliament for the ruling Labour Party said in a statement on landing in Iraq. "But I do accept that we have committed an offence in Britain by not informing the Department of Trade and Industry of our flight plan," he added. "I hope the government won't take action against us but if they do then we'll relish our days in court." The United States shows no sign of relenting on the sanctions, saying Iraqi President Saddam Hussein must first allow U.N. weapons inspectors to resume checks to ensure he is not reviving his chemical, biological or nuclear weapons programmes. The weapons inspectors have not been able to work in Iraq since late 1998. They were withdrawn before Britain
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 152
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 152 Thursday, November 9, 2000 LATEST NEWS+ Gulf states welcome Russian role in Iraqi settlement. -The Persian Gulf countries perceive positively Russia's versatile efforts to secure the settlement of the situation around Iraq, according to Vasily Sredin, the Russian president's special envoy for the Middle east and Deputy foreign minister of the Russian Federation. Sredin was speaking upon return from a regional tour which had taken him to Qatar to Bahrain to Kuwait to Saudi Arabia to the United Arab Emirates and Oman. Sredin said that the views of Moscow and the Arab capitals coincided or were very close to one another on a majority of positions. "To my mind, the discussion of the Iraq-related issues was very productive and useful," Sredin stressed. As concerns the unblocking of the critical situation in the Middle East peace process, Russia and the member-states of the Cooperation Council of the Gulf Arab Countries agreed that its was necessary to resume the negotiations in all directions - Palestinian, Syrian and Lebanese. The Arabs welcome Moscow's greater role as a co-sponsor of the regional settlement, Sredin said. vfp/. (c) ITAR-TASS 2000. ___ Lift Iraqi sanctions, says Putin. Text of report by Russia TV on 9th November [Presenter] This morning Vladimir Putin received credentials from ambassadors of nine states at a ceremony in the Kremlin. Presentation of credentials is an ancient and very good tradition. It is a symbol of mutual respect between states and their aspiration to cooperate as good neighbours. Ambassadors from Peru, Iraq, the Czech Republic, Venezuela and other countries in the Orient and Africa attended today's ceremony in the Alexander Hall of the Grand Kremlin Palace. Vladimir Putin noted in his message that Moscow is sincerely interested in the development of good relations with all states of the world. The president also stressed that many Russian approaches to the solution of international problems found understanding and support from the states whose ambassadors were presented in the Kremlin today. Here is what Vladimir Putin had to say about relations between Russia and Iraq. [Putin, speaking from a dais in an ornate room] Close cooperation and interaction - diverse cooperation, I would say - has developed between Russia and Iraq. Our position on a settlement of the Iraqi issue also remains unchanged. We only accept political and diplomatic ways of resolving existing disagreements. We consistently and purposefully advocate the earliest possible lifting of sanctions against Iraq and a return to normal life in that country. I would like to point out that the Russian Federation's position on this is gathering steadily more supporters at the UN. _ Greeks to fly to Iraq to oppose sanctions. ATHENS, Nov 9 (Reuters) - A group of Greek celebrities said they would fly to Iraq on Friday to protest against international sanctions on Baghdad. "We will remain in Baghdad for three days to express our solidarity to the people of Iraq who are suffering the consequences of santions," the group said in a statement issued on Thursday. They include actors, members of parliament and journalists, and international non-governmental organisations. The plane is the latest of several sent to Baghdad by Arab and non-Arab countries opposed to U.N. sanctions imposed after Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990. Baghdad International Airport was reopened in August for the first time in 10 years. Iraqi paper blames Jews for U.S. poll result delay. BAGHDAD, Nov 9 (Reuters) - A leading Iraqi newspaper on Thursday said the delay in declaring the result of the U.S. presidential election was orchestrated by the Jewish lobby which wanted Democrat Al Gore to win rather than Republican George W. Bush. Babel, newspaper of President Saddam Hussein's eldest son Uday, said the Jews in the United States wanted Gore to win in order to give more support to Israel in its clashes with the Palestinians. "If they (Jews) succeed in making Gore win the election they will become the real leaders of America," Babel said in a front page editorial. The paper accused Gore of being biased towards the Jews in the United States and Israel, saying Bush gave less importance to "cooperation with Zionist forces". Florida officials on Thursday are due to finish recounting six million votes that will decide who won Tuesday's election, but legal challenges could delay any victory parties for some time. Bush and Gore are both projecting confidence that they will ultimately capture Florida's 25 electoral votes and clinch the presidency. Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz stated on Wednesday that the hostile U.S. stance towards Baghdad would not change whether Bush or Gore won the election. "America allies itself with the Zionist entity (Israel
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 151
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 151 Tuesday, November 7, 2000 LATEST NEWS Crude Rises Amid Iraqi-Export Reports. NEW YORK - Crude-oil prices rose on reports that Iraq had halted its exports from Turkey's Ceyhan port for 12 to 24 hours. December crude shot up 54 cents to $33.40 a barrel at the New York Mercantile Exchange, their highest level in two weeks. Heating-oil prices also vaulted, getting an extra lift from weather forecasts of significantly colder-than-normal temperatures in the Midwest, Northeast, and most of the U.S. during the second half of November, analysts said. A cold snap last winter triggered heating-oil price spikes and led to the creation of a two-million-barrel Northeast reserve. Meanwhile, individuals at the United Nations said Iraq had halted Ceyhan loadings until its oil-revenue account was switched to euros from dollars. Iraq's euro account was set up yesterday, they said. (Dow JOnes) __ Sonatrach, ONGC, Reliance pact to bid for Iraq's Tuba. NEW DELHI, Nov 8 (Reuters) - Algeria's Sonatrach and India's ONGC Videsh and Reliance Petroleum will sign a pact on Friday to jointly bid to develop Iraq's Tuba oilfield, an ONGC official said on Wednesday. "Sonatrach, Reliance and OVL will sign a participating agreement on November 10 for joining hands and bidding for Tuba field development," the official, who declined to be identified, told Reuters. The agreement would be signed in London, he said. _ ANNAN TO DISCUSS U.N. ARMS INSPECTIONS WITH IRAQ. UNITED NATIONS - Iraq has asked for a meeting with Secretary-General Kofi Annan to try to break the impasse over arms inspections in the country, U.N. officials said Tuesday. Annan said at a news conference that he would meet representatives of the Iraqi government at a summit-level meeting of Islamic nations beginning on Sunday in Doha, Qatar. This is the first time since a new arms inspection plan was adopted by the Security Council in December that the government of Saddam Hussein has sought a meeting with U.N. officials. Iraq is required to cooperate with the new arms panel, the U.N. Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission, if sanctions imposed after the 1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait are to be lifted. The executive chairman of the commission, Hans Blix of Sweden, has assembled a team of inspectors and has said repeatedly that the Iraqis know where to find him but have not approached him. Blix, who has been touring countries that are Security Council members and is now in Paris preparing for a training course for 58 inspectors from 23 countries, met last week with Annan to discuss Iraq. "I will have a chance to talk with the Iraqi leadership in Doha, and I suspect the discussions to be broad-ranging," the secretary-general said Tuesday. "I think that the Iraqis - as many member states here in this organization - would like to see the impasse we are in broken, and for us to move forward." But Annan, who attracted criticism in the United States for meeting with Saddam in Baghdad in February 1998, said he was not in a position to offer the Iraqis any new ideas. Aides say he is not in a hurry to make another trip to Baghdad, either. "Obviously, whatever proposals that will help break the impasse will have to come out of the council - and with their support," he said. An agreement he struck with Saddam in 1998 to allow the resumption of inspections was soon violated by the Iraqis. Later that year, the United States and Britain bombed Iraq because of its refusal to cooperate. Since then, no inspections have been permitted, except for a routine International Atomic Energy Agency check of known nuclear material. In December 1999, the Security Council, deeply divided on how to proceed, established the new commission. Iraq has refused to deal with it. Some diplomats caution that the Iraqis may be hoping to renegotiate the terms of the 1999 Security Council resolution, knowing that a new U.S. president will have to rethink policy on Iraq, since support for comprehensive sanctions is eroding at the United Nations. That resolution allows for merely a suspension of sanctions and only after Iraq has made progress with inspections on the ground. Iraq wants the suspension first. Moreover, Iraq is expected to try to win support for an end to the air patrols by the United States and Britain over "no-flight" zones in the north and south of the country. These patrols are not U.N.-backed, and countries supporting Iraq would have to persuade the United States to suspend the flights in the hope that Iraq would promise to be more cooperative on arms inspections. Iraq, profiting from high oil prices and without limits on the amount it can sell to raise money for civilian needs, is using its better position internationally to encourage the easing of sanctions. Saudi Arabia said on Tuesday that it was opening a border trading post with
Join The Rebuilding of Baghdad Library Campaign
Dear Sir/Madame Join The Rebuilding of Baghdad Library Campaign The National Mobilization Committee for the Defense of Iraq (NMCDI) in Jordan has initiated an academic book collection Campaign for Iraq. The goal of this campaign, which has been dubbed "the rebuilding of the Baghdad Library", is to provide Iraqi students, academics and intellectuals with scientific and academic books and references that have been prohibited entry to Iraq for the past ten years. The excuse used is that these items are considered to be "double usage items". Thus Iraqi's have been denied the right to learn which is and internationally recognized and protected right. NMCDI, which has initiated this campaign, is a Jordanian popular committee that includes political parties, many civil society institutions, unions, organizations and independent personalities. This committee was established for the sole aim of raising local, regional and international public opinion regarding the need to lift the comprehensive economic sanctions that have been imposed on Iraq for since 1990. The NMCDI believes that the sanctions, which according to he UN have directly resulted in the death of at least 1.5 million Iraqi civilians and have caused a near total breakdown in the economic, social, educational and health sectors are a crimes against humanity. The book campaign is an attempt among many serious attempts carried out by the NMCDI to challenge the sanctions that have crippled a nation of 22 million. We believe that we can succeed in bringing people from all over the world together in unison to stop this atrocity which has denied ordinary Iraqis from the right to live learn and develop. Politics aside, we simply believe that it is immoral to deny 22 million Iraqis the gift of knowledge. Iraq's historical legacy is that it is the cradle of civilization and it gave humanity the first form of script and the first legal doctrines. In our time, Iraq was able was able to offer free education from kindergarten through university. However, after the destruction of the Iraqi economy as a result of the sanctions and the severe UN restrictions imposed on Iraq , its legacy and achievements have been reduced to day to day survival. The NMCDI has already announced this campaign in Jordan and work has begun in the book collection plan. However, to achieve our set goals, and to make this ambitious campaign a global effort, the NMCDI will be working with the Mariam Appeal organization based in London and led by British MP George Galloway. Information about the campaign can also be found on the Mariam Appeal Web Site: www.mariamappeal.com Our major goal is to collect and forward to Iraq the 8000 academic and scientific references needed by Iraqi universities and academic institutions, in an effort to replenish the their empty libraries. Therefore, our committee is contacting as many institutions, organizations and individuals as possible to participate in our campaign. With this letter we would like to officially invite you, your organization, your company to participate in this humanitarian campaign and help give back to Iraqis the gift of knowledge. If you choose to contribute to our campaign, please send us a return email choosing one or more of the following options for participation: ٱI agree to purchase one or more of the needed books, periodicals, CD's and forward to your address. ٱ I wish to contribute money to your campaign to go towards the purchase of one or more books, periodicals, etc. ٱ I wish to participate by organizing my mini book campaign in my area to collect academic references to forward to Iraq through your campaign Once we receive a return email from you stating your selected contribution, we will contact you immediately with the necessary details. If you wish to be taken off our list, please send us an email requesting that your name be omitted Please feel free to contact us at any time to answer any questions or respond to any comments you may have. Our aim to succeed in our goals and we know that together we can make a difference in making our world a better place. Contact person: Mr. Fawaz Zuriekat National Mobilization Committee for the Defense of Iraq International laison/ Rebuilding Baghdad Library Campaign Tel:962-6-5533166 Fax: 962-6-5533177 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Best regards Fawaz Zuriekat
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 150
Please forward as widely as possible. IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 150 Monday November 6, 2000 LATEST NEWS+ Iraq's Aziz protests US-UK violation of Iraqi airspace to UN. Text of report by Iraqi radio on 5th November Tariq Aziz, deputy prime minister and acting foreign minister, has sent two letters to the UN secretary-general and UN Security Council president protesting against the continued violation by US-UK jets of the sanctity of the Iraqi airspace, taking off from their bases in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Turkey. In the letters, Aziz asserted that this aggression represents a hostile policy, which the United States and Britain have continued to pursue against Iraq since 1992. He asked the UN secretary-general to undertake his duties, represented in preserving international security and peace. ___ Iraq-Syria pipeline may restart soon. An Iraq-Syria oil pipeline out of action since 1982 may start pumping again. A Syrian oil source reveals that it needs only a technical inspection to be completed. He declines to comment on a time-frame for the evaluation, but stresses operation would commence "very soon". Word of the resumption appeared to put sanctions-bound Iraq back on collision course with the United Nations, just days after a tussle over the denomination of its oil export revenues. UN diplomats say Iraq needs permission from the world body to implement an agreement with Damascus to export about 200,000 barrels per day of Basrah Light crude oil through the pipeline to Syria's domestic refineries. Baghdad wants the barrels sold outside the United Nations oil-for-food deal which allows Iraq to sell unlimited quantities of oil to buy food, medicine and other humanitarian needs for the Iraqi people suffering under nearly a decade of sanctions. Britain's Foreign Office said the proposed exports would deprive ordinary Iraqis of humanitarian support if they were conducted outside the UN oil-for-food programme. Revenues would go to the pockets of the regime to buy their luxuries and not to the Iraqi people. At current prices, Iraq's proposed sales to Syria would earn US$6 million a day. Under the programme 30 percent would go to Gulf War reparations and the rest to humanitarian purchases. But from December, Gulf War compensation will be reduced to 25 percent while humanitarian aid will rise to 75 percent. (c) 2000 MediaCorp News Pte Ltd. ___ Companies From 45 Nations Bid to Sell Goods at Annual Trade Fair in Iraq. BAGHDAD, Iraq (Reuters) - Hundreds of companies from 45 countries, most of them European, were bidding to sell goods at a Baghdad trade fair on Sunday, seen by organizers as breaking the decade-long United Nations trade sanctions. This years's 10-day fair, which opened Wednesday, is the biggest since it resumed in 1995 for the first time after the 1991 Gulf War. A total of 1,554 firms are taking part. U.N. trade sanctions, imposed shortly after the invasion of Kuwait, ban Iraq from trading freely with the rest of the world. But under an oil-for-food agreement, the U.N. allows Iraq to sell unlimited quantities of oil over six months to buy food, medicine and other goods for humanitarian purposes. The oil deal is expected to generate more than $10 billion in its current six-month phase because of soaring oil prices, opening the door wide for more trade than previous years. Official trade delegations from Italy, Spain, Germany, France, Sweden, Belgium, Finland, China, Russia, Turkey and Greece are attending the exhibition, with Finland, Belgium, Germany, Venezuela and Romania participating for the first time since the Gulf War. "This great number of participants reflects the idea that more world countries now call for lifting the sanctions which is a step toward breaking the embargo," the director of the fair, Fawzi al-Dhahir, said. The biggest participants are France, Russia and China - all three permanent U.N. Security Council members, which advocate an immediate end to sanctions. The U.S. and Britain are taking a stricter stance as they want to keep the sanctions in place as long as President Saddam Hussein stays in power. ___ Iraq resumes domestic flights. By Brian Whitaker Middle East editor. Iraqi Airways, grounded since the Gulf war, resumed regular domestic flights through the western-imposed no-fly zones yesterday, striking a further psychological blow against British-backed sanctions. Two Russian-built aircraft took off from Saddam International airport in Baghdad for Basra, in the southern no-fly zone, and Mosul, in the northern zone. An Iraqi official said the airline had started with one flight a week to each destination by plane, but added that there would be extra flights by helicopter. The US and Britain imposed the no-fly zones in 1991 to protect Kurds in the north and Shia Muslims in the south
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 148
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 148 Thursday, November 2, 2000 __ LATEST NEWS+LATEST __ LAUNCH OF THE BIG BEN TO BAGHDAD BUS FILM The Arab Club of Britain announces the premiere showing of the film "Big Ben to Baghdad". The Epic journey through three continents, ten countries and 15,000 miles from London to Baghdad in an antique double-decker London Routemaster bus. The Mariam Appeal chairman George Galloway MP will be joined by the veteran politician Tony Benn MP and Sabah Al-Mukhtar, President of the Arab Lawyers Association for debate following the film. The film will be shown at the Brunei Theater at the School of Oriental and African Studies SOAS, London at 630 p.m. on Thursday, 16th November, 2000. Nearest Tube station is Russell Square, London WC1 Admission free but donations are welcome FOLLOWING THE PREMIERE, VHS COPIES OF THE 60-MINUTE FILM WILL BE AVAILABLE AT THE SPECIAL PRICE OF £9.99 ___ UN Seen Willing To Consider Iraq Oil Exports To Syria. NEW YORK -(Dow Jones. Nov 2)-Iraq's plan to reopen a long-shuttered pipeline to export oil to Syria would need the permission of the U.N. Security Council to go ahead, U.N. diplomats said Wednesday. But they also said the Security Council has expressed a willingness to consider new outlets for the export of Iraqi oil. "We are not particularly concerned where the oil is pumped out, as long as it is monitored by the U.N. and the money goes into the escrow account," a Western diplomat said. Iraq produces about 3 million barrels a day of oil, of which about 500,000 b/d is used in Iraq and most of the remainder exported through the oil-for-food program. The Middle East Economic Survey reported Tuesday that Iraq will export around 200,000 barrels a day of Basra Light crude through the pipeline to Syria, probably beginning in mid-November. Syria in turn would export an extra 200,000 barrels a day of Syrian Light and Suwaidiya crude. Under the U.N. oil-for-food program, Iraq is allowed to export as much oil as it likes through two terminals: Mina al-Bakr in the Persian Gulf and Ceyhan in Turkey. The revenues are held in an escrow account and used in part to fund humanitarian aid. Iraq can't sell its oil outside the oil-for-food program, diplomats said. "If (the Iraqi plan) goes ahead, it would be a breach of sanctions unless authorized by the council," a diplomat said. Iraq hasn't sought the Security Council's authorization to reopen the pipeline. The Sanctions Committee could discuss the Iraq-Syria pipeline issue Friday, when it will meet to discuss a recent Syrian flight sent to Baghdad without notifying the committee, diplomats said. _ Iraqi Oil Seeps Through To Turkey,Jordan The Security Council, in a resolution passed last December, expressed its willingness to allow "the use of additional export routes" for oil and oil products sold through the oil-for-food program, another diplomat said. The council has also allowed some Iraqi oil to seep out without explicit approval. Iraq sells between 70,000 b/d and 90,000 b/d of crude oil to Jordan in transactions tacitly approved by the Sanctions Committee. Jordan relies on imports for its oil needs, and sanctions have cost the country billions of dollars in lost revenue from trade with Iraq. In addition, about 70,000 barrels a day of petroleum products are smuggled into Turkey by Iraqi Kurds, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. But the committee is unlikely to extend tacit approval of oil sales to Syria, which analysts said can't be justified on humanitarian grounds because Syria is an oil exporter. Nevertheless, the Security Council would be powerless to stop Iraq if it went ahead. "It's not like there is a U.N. police to tell the Iraqis, 'No, you can't do this,'" a diplomat said. In recent months, Security Council members have increasingly called for an easing of the sanctions imposed on Iraq nearly a decade ago. __ Jordan's PM visits Iraq to bolster diplomatic ties. Jordanian Prime Minister, Ali Abu Ragheb, and his delegation of Cabinet Minsters and businessmen has arrived in Baghdad. However, there was no confirmation on whether the Iraqi official had obtained UN clearance for the flight. The visit to the Iraqi capital - the first since the UN imposed its international sanctions on Iraq a decade ago - is Jordan's attempt to boost bilateral relations between the two countries. One of the things to be discussed at the meeting will be on securing Baghdad's agreement to renew an annual oil deal worth at least US$700 million this year. Also high on the agenda of talks is rehabilitating a 750km oil pipeline stretching from Haditha oil field in western Iraq to the Zarqa oil refinery, 27km northeast of Amman, Jordanian officials said. Iraq, which import
Forwarded re Palestinian Children's Relief Fund
This is a very good organization and deserves all support. I know Steve Sosobee personally and have the greatest respect for him and for his work. Mark From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Dear friends: Please visit the Palestinian Children Relief Fund website at HREF="http://www.wolfenet.com/~pcrf/how.html">The PCRF Needs Your Help and try to help as much as you can. Regards, Yosef
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 147
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 147 Tuesday, October 31, 2000 LATEST NEWS+LATEST LAUNCH OF THE BIG BEN TO BAGHDAD BUS FILM The Arab Club of Britain announces the premiere showing of the film "Big Ben to Baghdad". The Epic journey through three continents, ten countries and 15,000 miles from London to Baghdad in an antique double-decker London Routemaster bus. The Mariam Appeal chairman George Galloway MP will be joined by the veteran politician Tony Benn MP and Sabah Al-Mukhtar, President of the Arab Lawyers Association for debate following the film. The film will be shown at the Brunei Theater at the School of Oriental and African Studies SOAS, London at 630 p.m. on Thursday, 16th November, 2000. Nearest Tube station is Russell Square, London WC1 Admission free but donations are welcome FOLLOWING THE PREMIERE, VHS COPIES OF THE 60-MINUTE FILM WILL BE AVAILABLE AT THE SPECIAL PRICE OF £9.99 Iraq says will wait until Nov 6 before pricing oil exports in euros - sources WASHINGTON (AFX) - Iraq has told the UN's sanctions committee that it will wait until Nov 6 before starting to price its crude oil exports in euros instead of U.S. dollars, according to diplomatic sources. Iraq had previously asked the UN to make the necessary banking arrangements -- which it oversees under the Iraq oil-for-food program -- for switching currencies by Nov 1. Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has threatened to cut off Iraqi oil exports if the currency demands are not met, but analysts who spoke to AFX News voiced doubts that Iraq would cut off its oil exports. "If Iraq actually pulls out its oil exports, I would expect crude oil prices to top 40.0 usd a barrel in a very short period of time, but that's a very big 'if' because I don't believe that Saddam Hussein is really interested in doing that," said Fadel Gheit, an oil market analyst with Fahnestock & Co, in New York. Members of the UN sanctions committee, including the U.S., have indicated that they had no objection in principle to the change, but that it could cost some 270 mln usd annually in conversion costs and lost interest on the dollar account in which Iraq's oil revenues are held by the UN. The New York Mercantile Exchange December light sweet crude oil futures contract closed at 32.81 usd a barrel, up 7 cents compared with Friday's close. U.N. to Approve Iraq's Plan for Oil Payments in Euros >From DOW JONES BUSINESS NEWS, October 31st, 2000 UNITED NATIONS -- The United Nations agreed Monday to authorize Iraq's plan to establish a euro-based account for its oil revenues, removing fears that Iraq would suspend its exports of 2.3 million barrels a day of oil. The Security Council Committee on Sanctions Against Iraq agreed to allow buyers of Iraqi crude to start paying in euros instead of dollars, beginning next week, under a plan proposed by Iraq earlier this month. The Sanctions Committee will send a letter to the UN Secretariat on Tuesday, asking it to arrange for the establishment of a euro-based account, western diplomats said. Iraq earlier extended its deadline for establishing a euro-based account for its oil revenue until Nov. 6 to allow the United Nations to hammer out details of the plan. Iraq told its oil customers several weeks ago to start making payments in euros instead of dollars beginning Nov. 1, and threatened to halt its exports of about 2.3 million barrels a day of crude oil if the U.N. didn't approve its request. The Iraqi response came after the U.N. Treasury, which conducted a study of the Iraqi proposal, asked Baghdad on Friday to postpone its request to establish a euro account to allow the U.N. Secretariat time to resolve the issue. The U.N. Treasury found that Iraqi plan would cost the oil-for-food program millions of dollars stemming from currency conversion, hedging and lost interest earnings. Iraq would have to reduce the price of its oil by about 10 cents a barrel to compensate buyers for the additional costs, a U.N. report said. Iraq disputed those findings, saying the matter is "not so complicated," according to a Western diplomat. Gun dealer paid pounds 1.4m for false conviction >From THE GUARDIAN, October 31st, 2000 By RICHARD NORTON-TAYLOR An arms dealer whose conviction for selling machine guns to Iraq was quashed after evidence emerged that senior Foreign Office and customs officials had interfered in his trial has been awarded more than pounds 1m in compensation. Alexander Schlesinger, sales consultant to Atlantic Commercial, based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, has been awarded pounds 1.375m plus costs under the Home Office compensation scheme for miscarriages of justice. The sum was agreed by Jack Straw, the home secretary, on the advice of an independent assessor who took into account the seniority of diplomats and customs officers whose conduct was described by Sir Richard Scott, chairman of the arms-to-Iraq inquiry, as disgraceful. The claim is the latest in a series made by individuals
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 146
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 146 Monday October 30, 2000 NEWS+++LATEST OIL PRICES MAY PLUNGE World prices for crude oil could continue to drop in the week commencing 30 October 2000. This is provided there are no new crises regarding Iraqi exports or politically in the Middle East. The United Nations is reported to be willing to approve on 30 October 2000 Iraq's request for payment in euros instead of United States dollars but observers will remain cautious concerning the possibility of disruptions in Iraqi oil exports. Analysts said that the expected increase from the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries would not add pressure to oil prices. (Daily Telegraph October 30) >From BRIDGENEWS GLOBAL MARKETS, October 30th, 2000 Oct 30--0218 GMT/1118 JT . TOP STORIES: Iraqi oil minister says Iraq to start pricing oil in euro Wed Amman--Oct. 29--Iraqi Oil Minister Amer Rashid announced Sunday that his government would start pricing Iraqi crude exports in euros instead of the U.S. dollar as of Wednesday, according to the official Iraq News Agency (INA). He told the National Assembly that France, Russia and China had supported an Iraqi move in this respect at the U.N. Security Council, which was due to discuss this issue later this week. Rashid said his country supported "fair" oil prices for both consumers and producers. UN-Iraq euro rift may stall oil sales >From BRIDGENEWS GLOBAL MARKETS, October 30th, 2000 Top Stories in Monday's Wall Street Journal Europe: Iraq ignores United Nations' proposal that Baghdad put off plans to start pricing its oil contracts and other trade in euros instead of dollars. It intends to start signing contracts denominated in euros starting Nov. 1, whether or not U.N. supervisors of the country's so-called oil-for-food program approve the change. The U.N. Iraq Sanctions Committee is scheduled to meet Monday to discuss the issue, which, if unresolved, could lead to a supply crunch. Turkish troops kill 12 Kurdish rebels in southeastern province DIYARBAKIR, Turkey, Oct 30 (AFP) - Turkish soldiers have killed 12 Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) rebels in one of the deadliest clashes in recent months in the southeastern province of Sirnak, security officials said Monday. Three members of the Turkish security forces were wounded during the fighting in a rural area near the town of Beytusebap in the province which borders Syria and Iraq, a statement from the emergency rule headquarters in this southeastern city said. The statement did not say when the clash took place. Jordanian PM to make first flight to Iraq in decade: press AMMAN, Oct 30 (AFP) - Jordanian Prime Minister Ali Abu Ragheb will travel to Iraq by plane on Wednesday, the first Arab head of government to do so in a decade, for oil and trade talks, the press reported Monday. At the end of September a cabinet official told AFP that Abu Ragheb would travel to Iraq soon but the visit was apparently delayed for calendar reasons. A government source told AFP the visit "would probably" take place on Wednesday. Al-Rai newspaper said Abu Ragheb will fly aboard a Royal Jordanian plane to Baghdad and will be accompanied by "100 political and media figures." "Abu Ragheb will be the first Arab prime minister to visit Baghdad since the (UN) air ban was imposed on Iraq" following the 1990 invasion of Kuwait, the newspaper said. Al Aswaq economic newspaper said Abu Ragheb will chair the Jordanian side of the Jordan-Iraq joint commission aimed at renewing and raising the volume of an annual trade and oil agreement. Amman depends on Iraq for all its oil needs and under the terms of the agreement would import 4.8 million tonnes of Iraqi crude in 2000 at preferential rates in exchange for 300 million dollars worth of goods. Al Arab Al Yawm newspaper said six cabinet ministers will be travelling with Abu Ragheb to Baghdad for a visit expected to last three days. Al Aswaq said Jordan was "studying the possibility of operating a trade air link between Amman and Baghdad". Jordan became the first Arab country to defy the 10-year-old UN air ban imposed on Iraq at the end of September when it flew a humanitarian plane to Baghdad, strengthening ties between the two neighbours. Abu Ragheb's visit to Iraq will coincide with the Baghdad international trade fair which this year will attract 80 Jordanian firms or twice as many as those that attended the event in 1999. Trade and Industry Minister Wassef Azar is leaving for Baghdad later Monday to head his country's delegation to the fair. Amman Chamber of Commerce chief Othman Bdeir told official Petra news agency on Saturday that only 30 companies attended the fair last year compared to the 80 participants expected in Baghdad this year. Relations between the two countries deteriorated in the mid-1990s as Jordan, which is friendly with the United States, hosted Iraqi dissidents on its soil. But during the Gulf
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 145
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 145 Friday, October 27, 2000 NEWS++LATEST Arms-deal charges strike at one of Gore's strengths. Former US foreign-policy officials cast aspersions on his judgment. . Democrats see a late-election political ploy. >From CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR, October 27th, 2000 Allegations that Al Gore cut a secret - and possibly illegal - deal with the Russians over arms sales to Iran have put the vice president where no candidate likes to be on the eve of an election: playing defense. Republican congressmen are charging that Mr. Gore may have violated US law - or at least used bad judgment - by signing a memorandum in 1995 that allowed Russia to continue selling arms to Iran without the threat of economic sanctions. It's an allegation that strikes at what has been viewed as a key Gore asset - foreign-policy expertise. This week's congressional hearings on the subject were prompted by documents leaked to the press. The allegations against Gore are that he and then-Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin agreed to allow Russia to honor Soviet-era contracts and complete deliveries of non-nuclear arms to Iran, a country that the US considers a sponsor of international terrorism. In exchange, Moscow agreed not to sell any new weapons to the Mideast nation. Russian sales to Iran since this agreement was signed include a Kilo-class attack sub (featured in the film "The Hunt for Red October"), long-range torpedoes, and fighter planes. Republican senators say these are dangerous weapons in a dangerous part of the world, and that Congress should have been informed. After closed Senate hearings this week, the Clinton administration has refused to provide a text of the agreements, senators say. "What we do know now about the Gore-Chernomyrdin agreement and its implications for our interests abroad is disturbing," says Sen. Sam Brownback (R) of Kansas. "It is difficult for me to understand how this agreement is consistent with the Iran-Iraq Arms Non-Proliferation Act of 1992, a bill that the vice president himself introduced during his years in the Senate." The Gore campaign and the administration counter that these weapons do not imperil the US or its interests, and that the agreement helped prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, which advances American interests. They add that the agreement was reported by many media outlets at the time, and key House members were briefed on the meeting. "The arrangements discussed here today are manifestly in the interests of the United States and of the effort to halt nuclear proliferation," said Joseph DeThomas, deputy assistant secretary of State for regional nonproliferation in testimony Wednesday. "A partisan brawl that drags legitimately classified material into the newspapers ... can only benefit Iran." Moreover, other Democrats say, the timing of the hearings is suspect. Indeed, presidential contenders have historically faced charges and allegations in the final weeks before an election. George W. Bush faces a challenge of his own this week after a controversial new report cast dispersions on his success in turning around Texas schools. The Gore campaign jumped on this issue, and within 24 hours turned around a TV ad based on this report. It started airing in battleground states yesterday. Experts say it's not clear whether Russian arms sales to Iran have the same resonance with voters as education does. Foreign policy barely figures in opinion polls this election, and Iran no longer fires public emotions as it did in the 1980s. But the issue could influence some voters in a close race, especially after the recent terrorist attack on the USS Cole. It also raises important foreign-policy issues on the relationship between the executive branch and Congress. "What's at stake is a law that Al Gore and John McCain both supported," says Daniel Fisk of the Washington-based Heritage Foundation. "While the Congress has been willing to give the administration some flexibility, it's not willing to give a blank check." On Tuesday, former Secretary of State George Schultz and 10 other top foreign-policy officials said they were "deeply disturbed" by the agreement. "We also find incomprehensible that this agreement was not fully disclosed even to those committees of Congress charged with receiving highly classified briefings - apparently at the request of the Russian premier," the statement concludes. In response, former Rep. Lee Hamilton (D) of Indiana issued a statement that members of his staff had been briefed on the agreement in July 1995. "The judgment call many of us made in that meeting was that it made sense to get this kind of agreement," says a senior congressional aide who attended the meeting. But GOP senators and others are questioning whether this level of consultation was adequate. "I don't view a discussion of this issue as being a matter of supporting or repudiating either candidate," says Zbigniew Brzezinski, a former Assista
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 144
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 144 Thursday, October 26, 2000 All the news... Three more powerlifters test positive at Paralympics SYDNEY, Oct 26 (AFP) - Nine powerlifters have tested positive to banned drugs at the Sydney Paralympics with Thursday's announcement of three fresh doping cases, the International Paralympic Committee said. IPC medical director Michael Riding said the three, who tested positive in out-of-competition testing, were from Belarus, Nigeria and Iraq, but they have not yet been formally identified. US base in Turkey is placed on top alert >From The Daily Telegraph October 25th, 2000 BRITISH and American troops in the Middle East were on their highest state of defensive alert yesterday after intelligence sources reported having received information on plans for a terrorist attack on bases in the region. The threat was aimed at the joint air force base at Incirlik, Turkey, where 2,400 allied airmen and support staff enforce the northern no-fly zone over Iraq, as well as at troops and naval installations in Bahrain and Qatar in the Gulf. The alert came 12 days after the American destroyer Cole was crippled by a suicide bomb attack as it refuelled in the Yemeni port of Aden, killing 17 members of the crew and injuring 35. That attack has been linked by Yemen's government to a group with strong connections to Osama bin Laden, the Saudi multi-millionaire thought to be behind a number of attacks on American targets. At the US 5th Fleet headquarters in Manama, Bahrain, and at a smaller US air force support base near Doha, in Qatar, American Alert Status Delta, the highest state of readiness used by the Pentagon. Kyodo sports news summary TOKYO, Oct. 25 (Kyodo) _ BEIRUT - Japan spotted Iraq a one-goal lead in their Asian Cup quarterfinal on Tuesday, but came charging back to win 4-1 with two goals from Man of the Match Hiroshi Nanami and one apiece from Naohiro Takahara and Tomokazu Myojin. The Iraqi jinx looked set to continue for Japan at Beirut Sports City Stadium when a poor clearance from captain Ryuzo Morioka fell nicely for Iraq forward Abbas Jassim, who drilled a right-foot shot into the top corner with just four minutes gone. US BOMBS IRAQ >From MIRROR, October 25th, 2000 US warplanes have bombed air defence sites in Iraq after coming under anti-aircraft fire 250 miles north of Baghdad. Containing Iraq: A Forgotten War; As U.S. Tactics Are Softened, Questions About Mission Arise >From WASHINGTON POST, October 25th, 2000 Most of the year, Bernard Yosten pilots Boeing 727s for American Airlines out of Miami. But in mid-September, he came here for two weeks of flying Air Force F-16 fighters in the "no-fly zone" over northern Iraq, where he was shot at with both antiaircraft guns and surface-to-air missiles. The Iraqi fire "was pretty damned close," reported Yosten, who has since gone back to hauling tourists around the Caribbean. To a surprising degree, Operation Northern Watch, as the Air Force calls this mission, is conducted by part-timers. Other members of Yosten's Alabama Air National Guard unit on temporary duty here usually fly for Delta, United, Southwest, Northwest, Federal Express and United Parcel Service. Northern Watch is characteristic of U.S. military missions in the post-Cold War era: It is small-scale, open-ended and largely ignored by the American people. Even though U.S. warplanes are routinely dropping bombs on a foreign country, it has not been an issue in the presidential campaign and has hardly been mentioned by the candidates. Partly because Turkey and Arab allies want to keep their assistance quiet, the Defense Department makes public little information about the joint U.S.-British effort to prohibit Iraqi aircraft from flying over northern and southern Iraq, thereby protecting Kurds in the North and Shiite Muslims in the South who oppose Saddam Hussein's rule. But behind the official veil, the no-fly operation has undergone major changes and embarrassments that might have made headlines if it had a higher profile: * After patrolling aggressively last year, in a manner that one pilot says was intended to draw antiaircraft fire, the Air Force has pulled back and is avoiding known antiaircraft emplacements. Top commanders recently approved an order formalizing the de-escalation. * The Air Force also has stopped dropping "cement bombs," emptied of explosives, on antiaircraft batteries near mosques and other sensitive sites. For the most part, it now leaves those batteries alone. * The Turkish government has interrupted the flying schedule several times, sometimes to bomb Kurdish villages in Iraq and sometimes to protest America's refusal to sell Turkey certain precision-guided bombs. * U.S. aircraft mistakenly bombed and strafed a group of Iraqi shepherds last year because intelligence analysts misinterpreted satellite imagery and thought a water trough for sheep was a missile launcher. Iraq says the U.S. airstr
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 143
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 143 Tuesday October 24, 2000 LATEST NEWS++NEWS US troops in Turkey, Bahrain, Qatar on heightened alert [B] By The Associated Press Washington--Oct. 23-- U.S. forces in Turkey, Bahrain and Qatar have been placed on a heightened state of alert because of new indications of terrorist threats in the region, a senior defense official said Monday. The official, who discussed the matter on condition of anonymity, described the move as precautionary. "The reason it was done was the receipt of specific threats against U.S. forces in those areas, but from sources whose credibility is unknown," the official said. The heightened state of alert is for U.S. troops in Bahrain, Qatar and the Incirlik air base in southern Turkey, the official said, adding that the move was made over the weekend. Figuring in the decision to raise the alert level for troops in those three areas was the bombing Oct. 12 of the USS Cole, which was refueling in the Yemeni port of Aden when an explosion tore a hole in its hull. Seventeen sailors were killed and 39 were injured in what U.S. officials believe was the work of terrorists. Given the surprise attack on the Cole, "this was thought to be the prudent thing to do," the official said. Bahrain is headquarters for the U.S. Central Command's naval forces and for the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet. When the Cole was attacked, Central Command officials ordered all 5th Fleet ships out of port as a precaution against possible further attack, and they remained at sea last week. The Incirlik air base in Turkey is headquarters for the U.S. and British air patrols that are enforcing a "no fly" zone over northern Iraq. There is only a limited U.S. military presence in Qatar, with a small number of Air Force personnel stationed there. The United States also has an embassy in Qatar. Oil issues continue to rise as brent opens over 32 usd a barrel >From RBC NEWS, October 23rd, 2000 LONDON (AFX) - Shares in oil issues continued to firm midmorning, following the wider market higher, as the price of Brent crude opened above 32 usd a barrel on London's International Petroleum Exchange, in the wake of renewed conflict in the Middle East. Overnight reports said that Israeli helicopters fired on inhabited areas close to Bethlehem and south of Jerusalem, bringing the conflict -- which began on Sept 28 when a Palestinian riot was provoked by the visit of right-wing leader Ariel Sharon to the al-Aqsa mosque in east Jerusalem -- into its third week, with over 125 fatalities so far -- eight of them Israelis. Meanwhile, an emergency meeting of Arab leaders in Cairo failed to result in a unified stance towards the conflict: while Iraq, Libya and Yemen called for a break in ties with Israel and a jihad, the more moderate Arabic states refused to join in with the incendiary rhetoric, "keeping the doors open for the peace process", according to Yasser Arafat. The Arab world remains concerned that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak could appoint Sharon -- an opponent of the peace process -- to government, in a an attempt to shore up support. Iraq urges Arabs to overthrow their leaders after summit By Agence France-Presse Baghdad--Oct 23-- Iraq on Monday urged Arabs to declare a holy war, or jihad, against their own leaders to avenge the failure to agree action at the Arab summit in Cairo. The call came in a communique published in Monday's press after a meeting Sunday night of Iraq's highest body, the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC), and the ruling Baath party under the chairmanship of President Saddam Hussein. After reviewing the results of the summit which closed Sunday, they called on Arab masses "to step up the struggle and the jihad in every town and through all means to take vengeance on (their) leaders, above all Saudi Arabia and their confederates in the plot". The summit was "weak" and suspect," the communique said, describing the outcome as "poisoned and murderous swords brandished against the values of the great faith of the Arab nation." The Iraqi leadership accused certain Arab figures, without naming them of having turned into "official agents of the enemy...to harm, in the name of the United States and Zionism, the Arab masses." The agents would be "swept away by the anger of the people in revolt," the statement promised. Iraq's number two, Ezzat Ibrahim, who stood in for Saddam at Iraq's first Arab summit since the 1991 Gulf War sparked by its invasion of Kuwait, said Sunday his country had drawn up its reservations over the outcome. "Iraq's position on the Palestinian cause is clear: Iraq calls for efforts towards the liberation of Palestine by a jihad (holy struggle). "It is only by a jihad that we can recover Arab rights in Palestine and in the other occupied Arab territories," said Ibrahim, vice chairman of Iraq's decision-making RCC, directing the holy war at Israel. Arab leaders threw their financial and moral weight behind th
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 142
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 142 Monday October 23, 2000 LATESTNEWS+LATEST Russia to airlift humanitarian cargo for Iraq. >From ITAR TASS NEWS AGENCY, October 23rd, 2000 Humanitarian cargo for Iraq is to be airlifted from Russia's city of Barnaoul in south- western Siberia, Itar-Tass learned on Monday at the press service of the Altai air company. The flight was organized on the initiative of the Russian committee for solidarity with Iraq and the air company. Leaders of some Altai region enterprises and a children's dance theater will fly to Iraqi capital Baghdad on the same plane. On Sunday, the Altai air company held talks in Iraq on reconstruction of the civil aviation system in that country. Altai is also planning to unveil its mission in Baghdad. Arabs Assail 'Atrocities' By Israelis; Summit Rejects Actions Demanded by Hard-Liners >From WASHINGTON POST, October 23rd, 2000 Arab leaders today condemned Israel's "gruesome atrocities" in recent clashes with Palestinians, and proposed a war crimes tribunal--similar to those established for Rwanda and Kosovo--to prosecute right-wing Israeli politician Ariel Sharon and others. But the emergency summit of the Arab League stopped short of ordering any immediate, across-the-board economic or diplomatic actions against Israel, as some hard-line member countries had demanded. Instead, in a victory for moderates hoping to sustain the Middle East peace process, the summit recommended that any new steps toward normalizing relations with Israel be postponed, and that participation in regional economic or other conferences involving Israel be suspended. The summit established a $1 billion fund to support families of Palestinians injured in clashes with Israeli troops and agreed to a broader push to increase Arab control over Muslim holy sites in East Jerusalem. The United Nations was urged to investigate what the summit called war crimes by people such as Sharon, the former Israeli defense minister, whose visit to a religious site revered by both Muslims and Jews touched off three weeks of clashes. The summit also called for U.N. peacekeepers to go to Israel to stop what it called "barbaric" acts that have claimed more than 100 Palestinian lives. "It is the responsibility of the Israelis to restore stability due to their gruesome atrocities," said Arab League Secretary General Esmat Abdel-Meguid, reading from the summit's final proclamation. "It is an occupation force. It is an infringement on international law." In Israel, Prime Minister Ehud Barak praised Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, the summit host, for making "considerable effort to maintain a balanced approach, which calls for peace and restraint, instead of an extremist stance." But he also said Israel "rejects the threatening language" of the final declaration and was calling a timeout to the peace process. How Arabs react to the summit's decisions remains to be seen. After weeks of sometimes large and angry protests, including some in recent days targeted against Arab governments deemed too acquiescent, the summit's final communique may appear too evenhanded to some. In Egypt, thousands of students staged noisy demonstrations, venting their frustration at the summit's failure to cut ties with Israel and reiterating calls for a holy war to liberate the Palestinians. "Where is the Arab army?" they chanted angrily. Ramadan Abdullah Shallah, identified as a representative of the Islamic Jihad organization, told the Qatari satellite channel al-Jazeera from Beirut that the Arab leaders "proved again that what is more important to them is to stay in their seats." "Arab leaders have to decide if they are going to stay in their leadership based on the people's approval of them, or based on American and Israeli approval of them," said Jordanian opposition politician Leith Shubeilat. The final communique leaves it up to each country to decide whether to pursue more direct diplomatic or economic sanctions against Israel--a fact that Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa said in no way dilutes the strength of the Arab League position or the seriousness with which his country and others will follow the summit's resolutions. Tunisia announced immediately it was closing the office of an Israeli envoy, following Morocco and Qatar in suspending low-level trade relations that Israel hoped would eventually develop into full diplomatic ties. Moussa said he expected more of the 22 Arab League countries to take steps but would not say what Egypt plans to do. Egypt, the first Arab country to sign a peace treaty with Israel, is also the one with the most extensive economic and diplomatic ties. The actions to be taken by Egypt and others "will be clarified in the near future, and the more there is aggravation on the Israeli side, our response will be aggravated, too," Moussa said. Egypt and Jordan argued at the two-day weekend meeting for a more moderate Arab stand, contending that to seve
Siege Continues
Siege Continues October 23, 2000 6:00pm+GMT Today, October 23, 2000, the Israeli military forces continued their siege on Palestinian areas. In Gaza, Israeli military officials closed Gaza airport for the second time and have sealed off the sea along the Gaza Strip. Israeli forces have also reinstated full closure of all major West Bank cities, including Hebron, Bethlehem, Ramallah, Nablus, Jenin and Qualkilya. Settlers continue their attacks in the Palestinian areas of Hebron, Ramallah, Nablus, Beit Furik, Huwara, Salem, Jalout, Jenin Tulkarem, Rafa, Khan Younis, and Beit Hanun. Clashes continued around the West Bank and Gaza. 45 people have been injured, 5 are in critical condition after being hit with live ammunition. Four have been identified so far: Ibrahim Najjar 14, from Khan Younis was shot in the head with live ammunition. Muhanad Abu Quar 22, from Jericho was hit in the chest with live ammunition. Namoir Abdul Karim 59, from Qualkilya was hit with live ammunition. Maher Ghana, 15, from Sayir was shot. In a separate incident, 53 year-old Nadaa Saied Sruji died from a heart attack after being chased by Israeli soldiers as she passed a checkpoint near Tulkarem. She and other Palestinians were passing into Israel to go to work. Sruji is the mother of 9 children. LAW - The Palestinian Society for the Protection for Human Rights and the Environment is a non-governmental organisation dedicated to preserving human rights through legal advocacy. LAW is affiliate to the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), The Federation Internationale des Ligues de Droits de l'Homme (FIDH), The World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), and is a member of the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network (EMHRN) LAW PO Box 20873 Jerusalem Tel: 00 972 2 583 3428/3298/3537/3530/3430 Fax: 00 972 2 583 3317 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Website: http://www.lawsociety.org
Albright slips on Iraqi oil exports to U.S.
Albright slips on Iraqi oil exports to U.S. WASHINGTON, Oct 15 (Reuters) - Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, whose job it is to oversee U.S. foreign policy, is apparently unaware how important Iraq's crude oil is to United States. Albright said on Sunday that the United States did not purchase oil from Iraq. ``I do not believe so. I don't think so,'' she said on the ABC news programme ``This Week'' when asked if the U.S. market used Iraqi oil. She was off by 124.6 million barrels. That is how much oil the United States imported from Iraq during the first seven months of this year, according to the latest data from the Energy Department. Iraq was the sixth-biggest supplier of oil to the United States during the period, shipping an average of 585,000 barrels per day. A barrel holds 42 gallons (160 litres) of oil. Iraq shipped more oil than Kuwait, which a U.S.-led international military force liberated from an invading Iraqi army a decade ago. Kuwait exported 217,000 bpd of crude to the United States during the seven-month period. Saudi Arabia was the biggest U.S. oil supplier, shipping 1.442 million bpd. Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush has criticised the Clinton administration's energy policy as a threat to U.S. national security. He points out that the United States depends on foreign countries for more than half its oil supplies. While Iraq is bound by strict U.N. economic sanctions imposed after the Gulf War, it is allowed to sell oil under a special U.N.-run programme to get money for buying food, medicine and other humanitarian goods. 14:13 10-15-00
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 141
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 141 Friday October 20, 2000 NEWS++LATEST+++ Oil prices: Market may be on its way back to September peak >From MIDDLE EAST ECONOMIC DIGEST, October 20th, 2000 Oil prices were in mid-October threatening to return to their recent peaks before the 24 September release of 30 million barrels of crude from US strategic stocks. Prices rose by 10 per cent, or $3 a barrel, over the five days to 11 October. Falling US fuel stockpiles, forecasts of cold spells in North America and rising tension in the Middle East were responsible for the price increases. The international benchmark Brent price was approaching $33 a barrel on 11 October, just short of the peak of nearly $35 achieved in September. The price of OPEC's basket of seven crudes rose above $30 a barrel on 10 October. Traders said the main reason for the price rises was a fall in US crude and product stocks. Weekly inventory data from the American Petroleum Institute (API) show an across-the-board fall, with especially large declines for crude and middle distillates, which include winter heating oil. Armenian `genocide` resolution pulled from US House floor WASHINGTON, Oct 19 (AFP) - A draft US congressional resolution that generated friction between the United States and Turkey was pulled from the floor of the House of Representatives Thursday, after President Bill Clinton intervened against it by citing national security concerns. House Speaker Dennis Hastert announced his decision to withdraw from consideration the so-called Armenian Genocide resolution after receiving a letter from the White House, in which Clinton mentioned US "significant interests" in the Middle East, Central Asia, the Balkans and the Gulf, which require Ankara's cooperation. "Consideration of the resolution at this sensitive time will not only negatively affect those interests, but could undermine efforts to encourage improved relations between Armenia and Turkey -- the very goal the Resolution's sponsors seek to advance," the president wrote. The draft had urged the president to show "appropriate understanding and sensitivity" toward events in the Ottoman Empire eight decades ago, during which, according to resolution sponsors, 1.5 Armenians were killed and another 500,000 were driven from their homes. Turkey disputes these figures and insists the events in the northeast of the country between 1915 and 1923 cannot be qualified as genocide. Turkish officials have made it clear that if the resolution passes, the government would reevaluate its relations with the United States, including access to southern Incirlik Air Base, currently used by US warplanes to patrol the no-fly zone over northern Iraq. IPU Passes Resolution on Lifting Sanction Against Iraq JAKARTA (Oct. 20) XINHUA - The Committee on the Supplementary Item of Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) here Friday adopted a resolution on lifting the U.N. economic embargo against Iraq. The resolution, which was passed with 17 positive votes, 12 oppositions and 4 abstentions, said the economic embargo imposed on Iraq by the United Nations has brought misery to the Iraqi innocent people, so it should be removed. The draft motion was proposed by the Iraqi Parliamentary delegation which is attending the 104th IPU conference. Speaker of the Iraqi National Assembly, Sa'adoon Hammadi said the economic and military sanction imposed on his country did not reflect the international community's will, the interest of some powerful countries that don't want to see the emerging of Iraq. Meanwhile, the meeting also passed a resolution on financing for development. The resolution calls on all countries and institutions in the world to make efforts to reduce poverty. Iraqi foreign minister urges `jihad` to attain `full Arab rights` Text of report by Iraqi radio on 19th October Foreign Minister Muhammad Sa'id al-Sahhaf called on the Arabs to adopt the jihad strategy. He told reporters after the opening session of the Arab foreign ministers' meeting today: We should adopt a strategy to defend all Arab rights. He added: From the Iraqi point of view, jihad will guarantee the attainment of full Arab rights. He stressed: We call for jihad in response to demands in the Arab nation, as demonstrated in all Arab states. Iraqi military spokesman reports 19th October US-UK air sorties Text of report by Iraqi TV on 19th October At a time when the struggling Palestinian people are confronting the oppressi
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 140
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 140 Thursday, October 19, 2000 LATEST+++NEWS+ Syrian aircraft violates UN sanctions >From JANES DEFENCE WEEKLY, October 18th, 2000 MIDDLE EAST/AFRICA A Syrian A320 carrying food, medicine and a delegation led by Muhammad Mufdi Sayfu, Syrian minister of state for cabinet affairs, landed in Baghdad on 8 October, becoming the seventh Arab state to challenge the UN air embargo on Iraq. Syrian 'solidarity' flight lands in Baghdad BAGHDAD, Oct 18 (AFP) - A Syrian aircraft, the third solidarity flight from Damascus, touched down Wednesday at Saddam International Airport carrying agricultural engineers, the Iraqi News Agency reported. The delegation was to remain only a few hours, an Iraqi official said. The first Syrian plane to fly into Baghdad in 20 years landed on October 8, as part of an Arab campaign against a decade-old UN air embargo. A second Syrian aircraft followed three days later. A long list of Arab countries have tested the embargo, following Russian and French flights, since the reopening of Baghdad's airport on August 17, while Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi flew in last Friday. Paris and Moscow say the air embargo, part of the sanctions regime, does not cover private non-commercial flights. Washington and London insist all flights must be approved by a UN sanctions committee. Football: Japan score eight in record victory >From The Independent October 18th, 2000 JAPAN BEAT Uzbekistan by a record 8-1 scoreline to reach the quarter- finals of the Asian Cup yesterday. The Japanese success, featuring hat-tricks from Akinori Nishizawa and Naohiro Takahara, is the biggest victory in the history of the tournament. "Our goal today wasn't to set a new record but to get three points and make it to the quarter-finals," said Japan's French coach Philippe Troussier. "I am very happy and also a little surprised. It was too easy." After defeating the defending champions, Saudi Arabia, 4-1 in their opening match, the Japanese produced another high-scoring display, finding the net five times inside the opening 25 minutes. The previous highest victory was accomplished by Iran who thrashed Bangladesh 7-0 in 1980. The former record-holders will be battling it out with Iraq today to secure a place in the quarter-finals. Matches between the two, once the powerhouses of Asian football are always full of tension following the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war and both go into their latest encounter with little separating them. Both teams have four points, but Iran has the edge with a superior goal difference. Their last meeting resulted in a 2-1 victory for Iraq in 1996 and victory in this year's competition would be long overdue for both countries. Iraq has never won the Asian Cup, and it has been 24 years since Iran took the trophy home. "Twenty-four years is a long time to wait," said the Iranian striker Ali Daei, who plays for German side Hertha Berlin. "We are certain to win this year's cup," added Asia's player of the year. Iran won the title in 1968, 1972 and 1976, but Iraq have suffered since the United Nations sanctions imposed after the 1990 invasion of Kuwait. Until recently the national team have been isolated in the international football arena. Their first real test came in last year's Pan Arab Games, when they finished runners-up to Jordan, losing on penalties after trailing 4-0 with 12 minutes to go. Iraq gives sanctuary to hijackers >From The Independent October 18th, 2000 IRAQ HAS refused to extradite the two Saudi hijackers of the Saudi plane diverted to Baghdad at the weekend. "Our people, throughout their history, have never handed over anyone who seeks refuge," said the Interior Minister, Muhammed Zimam Abdulrazzaq. "He who comes to Baghdad is safe because Baghdad is for all Arabs." Oman firm on Iraqi crude supply uncertainty BridgeNews New Delhi--Oct. 18--December-loading Oman crude in the Persian Gulf (PG) spot market remained firm Wednesday on continued uncertainty of crude supplies from Iraq after expiration of the current eight-phase contracts early December. Traders expect Oman offers to stay within U.S. 10-15 cents per barrel premium to its official selling price (OSP) until a clear picture emerges on Iraqi supplies. Iraqi FM: Lifting Embargoes Against Iraq JAKARTA (Oct. 18) XINHUA - The Iraqi delegation at the ongoing 104 Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) conference here Wednesday called on the international community as well as the United Nations to lift economic and military sanctions imposed on it over past years, adding it would shoot its bolt in convincing international community that such embargoes were not fair. Speaker of the Iraqi National Assembly, Sa'adoon Hammadi said that the imposition of emb
Subject: UK MP George Galloway coming to the US - please forward widely
Message from Rania Masri: Dear all, UK Member of Parliament George Galloway is planning a trip to the US in late November. George Galloway is a vocal opponent of the sanctions on Iraq and is a spellbinding and fearless speaker. Galloway organized the Emergency Committee on Iraq in 1991 and founded the Mariam Appeal in 1998 (see: www.mariamappeal.com). Most recently he sponsored the Bus to Baghdad, a London Doubledecker Bus that was driven from the UK to Baghad with a load of medicines. He also attempted to fly a plane into Baghdad earlier this year, but was blocked by the British Government. Galloway was elected to Parliament in 1987 and, with the exception of 1991, he has served as the senior vice chairman of the party's foreign affairs committee ever since. He has traveled widely in the Arab and broader Islamic world and is an author, regular broadcaster and writer for the Mail on Sunday, Britain's second biggest Sunday newspaper. If you are interested in inviting George Galloway to speak in your locale, please let me know as soon as possible. thank you, -Rania Masri Rania Masri [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 139
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 139 Tuesday October 17, 2000 LATEST NEWS+++LATEST++ Passengers never knew they were hostages >From The Independent October 16th, 2000 Freed Britons offered counselling after ordeal as propaganda coup brings pressure to lift UN sanctions on Iraq THE BRITISH passengers whose plane was hijacked en route to London and forced to land in Baghdad, yesterday told of their ordeal - and how they only became aware of their situation once they had landed. The 40 Britons, along with another 64 passengers and crew, were freed late on Saturday after Saudi Arabian Airlines Flight 115 touched down in the Iraqi capital and the hijackers gave themselves up to authorities. Despite some initial concerns that Saddam Hussein might try to force some political mileage from the Westerners, the freed hostages said they had been treated very well by the Iraqis. Speaking from Baghdad's Rashid Hotel, where the passengers were put up, Jacky Stone, from London, told The Independent: "For a few minutes things were pretty scary. The first we knew was when we landed at Baghdad. We had been in the air for the right amount of time but when we landed I knew it was not Heathrow. Then a steward came onto the intercom and said `The captain had a problem. We have landed at Baghdad but not to worry'. The atmosphere was very calm." Mrs Stone, who is married with three children, was returning to London after an eight day work related visit to Saudi Arabia said: "The stewards on the plane we exceedingly good and the Iraqis have looked after us very well. Now we are waiting to get home." Another passenger, Maria Scott, was travelling to Britain for the birth of her daughter's first child. "I am now beginning to worry that I will not be there in time," said Mrs Scott, a South African, who lives in Saudi Arabia, shortly before the passengers left the hotel to travel to Jeddah and then onto London. The Britons are expected to arrive at Heathrow Airport later today after overnighting in Jeddah. A specially chartered plane had last night been put on standby to return them to London. "We will be ready to meet them and there will be counsellors available to speak to them if they feel like it," said Philip Griffin, Saudi Arabian Airlines airport manager at Heathrow. "They will be debriefed by Heathrow police and then reunited with their families and loved ones." Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia's Deputy Interior Minister, Prince Ahmed, said yesterday his country would demand the immediate extradition for trial of the two hijackers, whom he identified as Faisal al-Biloowi and Ayish al-Faridi. Hijacking carries the death penalty in Saudi Arabia. Among the other passengers aboard the flight, which was hijacked while over Egypt, was 19-year-old Saudi Prince Bandar bin Mohammed bin Saad bin Abdul-Rahman, a cousin of King Fahd. Interviewed on state television on Saturday, the prince thanked the Iraqi government for the way it handled the crisis. Quite how Iraq will respond to the Saudi demands remains unclear. The two countries have had no diplomatic relations since Iraqi troops invaded Kuwait in 1990, but a pre-Gulf War treaty provides for extradition. There was also confusion as to whether the hijackers - one said to be a border guard, the other an undercover security officer at Jeddah airport - were seeking asylum. Taher Haboush, the Iraqi official who led negotiations with the hijackers, said they had asked for political asylum, but the two men told reporters they wanted to leave Iraq. "We want to choose our own leaders. The time of kings and monarchies is over," Mr al-Faridi said. Hijacked Passengers Arrive In Britain October 16th, 2000 LONDON (AP) _ Most of the passengers hijacked on a London-bound Saudi Arabian Airlines flight finally arrived in Britain on Monday, 40 hours after their ordeal began. The plane was hijacked Saturday moments after takeoff from Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, by two Saudis who said they wanted rights for their country's people. The jet eventually landed in Baghdad, where the two men surrendered peacefully after hours of negotiations. Relatives began lining up at London's Heathrow Airport almost four hours before the flight arrived Monday. One Muslim family carried ``Welcome Home'' placards as they waited to greet a couple caught up in the hostage drama on their way back from a pilgrimage. The granddaughter of Ghulam and Tyab Qureshi, Amreen, held a homemade sign on which she and her two cousins had written: ``Thank you, Saddam & Iraqi people for taking good care of our grandparents.'' ``We were so worried about my parents, we did not know what to do, and hardly slept all weekend,'' said Amreen's father, Shabir Qureshi. ``All weekend we have just been praying nonstop,'' said Mohammed Asjid, who came to greet his father, Mohamed Akbar, 53, who also had been away on a pilgrimage. ``Now I can't wait to see him.'' But the families had to wait while officers from Britain's Special Branch debrie
Letter to the Editor protesting treatment of Palestinians - Published in Pittsburgh Post Gazette on October 16, 2000
http://www.post-gazette.com/forum/20001016edlets6.asp Why Palestinians rage [Title created by Editor - also see note after letter] After reading the Oct. 2 editorial "Unholy Violence" and the Oct. 6 letter "The Latest Violence Puts In Doubt Palestinian Sincerity For Peace," I feel compelled in the name of truth and fairness to respond. Both claimed that the Palestinians' reaction to Ariel Sharon's visit to the most holy Muslim site in Jerusalem was unjustified. The editorial questions why they are frustrated. Having spent a year among the Palestinians, I question how they could not be. How could the Palestinians not be frustrated when their people are relabeled as terrorists every time a Jew is killed, while Jewish soldiers and settlers kill Palestinians with impunity in the name of liberty? When they go thirsty while nearby the Zionists water their lawns and fill their swimming pools? When their lives, from their travel to the food they eat, are controlled by the state of Israel in direct violation of U.N. resolutions? Did the victims of the Holocaust die in vain? Have the Jews forgotten what happens when a people's humanity is taken from them? Since the 1948 war, the Palestinians have displayed remarkable restraint as they suffered at the hands of the Zionists. However, Sharon's deceivingly innocent visit to Al Sharif caused the last shreds of this long-taxed restraint to crumble. Sharon is not just another Israeli leader. He is responsible for one of the most brutal massacres in recent history. In 1982 Israel invaded Lebanon. Israeli troops under Sharon's command butchered thousands of helpless Palestinian women and children in two refugee camps in southern Lebanon. The truth will show the real transgressors in this conflict to be the Israelis responsible for the atrocities committed by Israel -- for far too long hidden behind memories of the Holocaust and the unfair demonization of the Palestinian people. REUEL CLEMENT Youngwood, Pa. Paragaraph omitted by Editor: "Were a nazi general to visit the Jewish Wailing Wall in Jerusalem perhaps the Jews would experience a sense a sense of horror and desecration similar to that felt by the Palestinians as a result of Sharon's unpardonable act."
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 138
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 138 Monday, October 16, 2000 LATEST+++NEWS++LATEST Riyadh calls for extradition of hijackers RIYADH, Oct 16 (AFP) - Saudi Interior Minister Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz called on Iraq Monday to extradite the two Saudi hijackers who seized a Saudi Arabia Airlines Boeing 777 at the weekend. "We call for the handing over of the two hijackers," who are being held by the Iraqi authorities, Prince Nayef told a press conference here. Saudi Arabia and Iraq do not have diplomatic relations, which were broken off during the Gulf War in 1991 after the invasion of Kuwait by the forces of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein in August 1990 Hijackers are both Saudi security men: official RIYADH, Oct 16 (AFP) - The hijackers of an airliner to Iraq are both Saudis employed in the security forces who used a service revolver to take over the aircraft, Interior Minister Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz said Monday. The two friends "managed to smuggle a revolver aboard the plane which they used to hijack the aircraft," the prince told a press conference. They forced the pilot of the Saudi Arabian Airlines flight from Jeddah to London to land in Baghdad on Saturday. He named the pair as Faisal Naji al-Balawi, 26, who worked in Jeddah airport as a security officer, and Ayesh Ali al-Fridi, a border guard in Najran, in the south of the kingdom. The first used his position to avoid security checks to carry the revolver on board the Boeing 777, the minister explained. "They are friends ... travelled often together on holiday to Britain, France, Egypt and Morocco," he added. AL-Fridi had a reputation for "ill-discipline and bad behaviour," the prince noted. He ruled out any "political motive" for the hijacking and said they had no contact with political or foreign parties. Nayef also praised the "positive" behaviour of the Iraqi authorities who quickly defused the crisis. A Gulf source had told AFP on Sunday: "They do not belong to any political group and were armed only with their revolvers." Their names figure on the Saudi Arabian Airlines flight's official passenger list published in Sunday's Arabic newspapers. The pair surrendered without a fight after forcing the plane to land late Saturday at Saddam International Airport, leaving all aboard to walk free unharmed. But they then told journalists they still had a bomb on the plane, that the affair was not over and they still wanted to "negotiate". They called for an inquiry into human rights abuses in Riyadh, slammed the Riyadh regime as being under US hegemony, and, according to some reports, requested political asylum. "I have a detonator in my pocket which I can activate to trigger a bomb placed on the plane," one of the two, circled by Iraqi police but looking relaxed, said at the airport. The other hijacker, concealing part of his face with a scarf, said their aim was "to demand justice and equality in Saudi Arabia" and called for an inquiry into alleged corruption and human rights abuses in the kingdom. They also denounced "the presence of the US and British armies" in Saudi Arabia, echoing a common theme of anti-Riyadh hostility in Baghdad. And they voiced solidarity with the sanctions-hit Iraqi people. The hijackers nonetheless said they had treated the passengers well during their ordeal, which passengers confirmed. "We treated them like brothers," one of the two told journalists. Ersumer says all ready for 1.5 mln bpd Iraqi oil [B] By BridgeNews Istanbul--Oct. 16--The Turkish government has taken necessary measures to operate
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 137
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 137 Friday October 13, 2000 LATEST NEWS++LATESTNEWS+++ Russian airlines awaiting Foreign Ministry permission for Iraq flights MOSCOW (AP) _ Russia's Vnukovo Airlines is awaiting permission from the Foreign Ministry before launching regular flights to Iraq, a company spokesman said Friday. Alexei Sapkin, a spokesman for the airline, said that Vnukovo hoped to start twice-weekly flights by the end of the year. ``All will depend on the decision by the Foreign Ministry,'' Sapkin said. The United States and Great Britain insist that passenger flights to Iraq are an economic resource for Saddam Hussein's government and therefore a breach of U.N.-mandated sanctions imposed after Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait. But Russia is eager to see sanctions lifted so it can resume lucrative oil contracts with Baghdad and have Iraq pay back some dlrs 8 billion in Soviet-era debt. Along with France, Moscow contends that U.N. resolutions do not specifically ban passenger flights. Russia's state-run airline, Aeroflot, has said it plans to resume passenger flights to Baghdad as early as this month. Sapkin said that Vnukovo was sending three humanitarian flights to Baghdad on Oct. 27, Nov. 3 and Nov. 10. Those flights have been chartered by the Moscow-based Committee for International Cooperation with Iraq. Several Russian planes with humanitarian aid have flown to Baghdad in recent weeks, often taking along businessmen and cultural officials seeking to open offices in Baghdad and establish ties with Iraq. Vnukovo expects heavy demand for its flights from American and European businessmen and politicians as well as Russians, Sapkin said. Ultimately, the airline plans to run daily flights to Baghdad. ``We'll have the first flights between a European location and Iraq,'' Sapkin said. ``We'll serve the whole planet.'' Sanctions against Iraq are to remain in place until Baghdad complies with demands to dismantle its weapons of mass destruction. For the past decade, travelers to Iraq have generally had to fly to Amman, Jordan, and then drive to Baghdad. Iran's foreign minister in Baghdad to try to solve war-related issues BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) _ Iran's foreign minister arrived in Baghdad Friday to talk about prisoners of war, reparations and other issues lingering from the 1980-1988 war between the two countries. Both Kharrazi and his Iraqi counterpart Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf expressed hope that their discussions over the next several days will lead toward normalizing ties. The visit follows a meeting between Iranian President Mohammad Khatami and Iraqi Vice-President Taha Yassin Ramadan following the summit the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries held in Venezuela last month. Several joint committees the countries set up in 1997 made some progress, particularly on the prisoner of war issue. But they bogged down on questions like border security, war reparations and the signing of a peace treaty. Iran would like to reactivate a 1975 border pact the countries signed in Algiers. The deal obliges the countries to halt cross border infiltration and attacks by opposition groups based in each other's territory. Iraq is said to have accepted an Iranian demand to throw out the Iranian exile Mujahedeen Khalq provided Tehran reciprocates. Iran provides refuge to guerrillas of the Supreme Council of Islamic Revolution in Iraq. Tehran would like Baghdad to pay billions of dollars in war reparations. It refuses to return scores of civil and military aircraft Iraq flew to Iran to escape bombing by U.S. and allies during the 1991 Gulf War over Kuwait. Relations slightly thawed in 1999 when thousands of Iranian pilgrims started pouring into Iraq to pay homage to Shiite holy sites. But the pilgrimage was abruptly halted several months ago with each country blaming the other for the stoppage. ``Under good understanding and good neighborly relations we can solve all the outstanding issues between our countries,'' Kharrazi said. Al-Sahhaf said: ``We have made progress in this sphere but there still are lingering issues.'' Kharrazi flew to Saddam International Airport. His aides said the plane had U.N. authorization to land in Baghdad. Planes from Russia, France and several Arab countries have arrived at the Baghdad airport in the past few weeks to show solidarity with Iraqi people suffering under U.N. trade sanctions imposed on Iraq for invading Kuwait in 1990. On Friday, the official Iraqi News Agency reported that two Sudanese planes with 1 million pencils and six tons of medical supplies arrived. Wall Street shares close lower on Middle East, oil industry worries NEW YORK (AFX) - Share prices closed sharply lower on all major indices, following a volatile session dominated by nervousness about the crude price in the face of escalating Middle East violence and threatening oil industry developments in Latin America, dealers said. The DJIA closed only slightly above its intrada
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 136
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 136 Thursday October 12, 2000 LATEST NEWSLATEST+++NEWS Iraq threatens to halt oil exports over UN money By Agence France-Presse Baghdad--Oct. 12--Iraq could suspend oil exports if the United Nations fails to convert into euros billions of Iraqi-owned U.S. dollars held in a U.N. account, the Iraqi central bank's deputy governor told a weekly published on Thursday. The Iraqi money is currently held in a U.S. dollar-denominated escrow account administered by the U.N. and used to operate the oil-for-aid program between the U.N. and Baghdad. The oil-for-aid program allows Iraq to sell a limited value of oil to pay for humanitarian supplies. "Iraq may suspend crude exports if the United Nations refuses to reply favourably to its request to convert into euros its account at the French bank BNP," deputy governor Abdel al-Ilah Boutros told Al-Zawra. Iraqi Finance Minister Hekmat Ibrahim al-Azzawi announced last month a decision to ditch the dollar in foreign trade transactions. "The dollar is the currency of an enemy state, and must be abandoned for other currencies, including the euro," Azzawi said. The central bank announced Sunday it had begun to buy European currencies. Since December 1996 the United Nations has allowed Iraq to sell oil to pay for imports of food and medicine. Under the decade-old sanctions regime none of the revenue is allowed to pass through Iraqi government hands. Instead, it is paid into an escrow account at BNP-Paribas, which is paid a fee for operating the account. The Iraqi cabinet decided Sept. 25 to shift from the dollar to the euro or any other reserve currency after a group of economists recommended the move, according to an official statement. The panel was asked earlier by President Saddam Hussein to study the feasibility of the departure to the euro from the dollar, the currency of a state that Iraq considers an enemy. Iranian FM set to visit Baghdad on Friday BAGHDAD, Oct 12 (AFP) - Iran's Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi is expected in Baghdad Friday on a three-day visit, the first such mission in 10 years, an official Iraqi source said Thursday. Kharazi will stay in Iraq "until Sunday" and be accompanied by a delegation of high-ranking Iraqi officials, the source speaking on the condition of anonymity told AFP. It will be the first such mission by an Iranian foreign minister since Ali Akbar Velayati travelled to Iraq in November 1990 ahead of the Gulf War in which Iraqi forces were evicted from Kuwait. A source in Tehran said Tuesday Kharazi could fly to Baghdad, joining a string of Arab and other states which have tested a UN embargo on flights in recent weeks to sanctions-hit Iraq. The official Iraqi news agency had announced the visit on September 30, saying its aim was to examine ways of improving relations between the two countries, but gave no date. After the 1980-88 war between the two neighbours, Iran and Iraq renewed relations at charge d'affaires level in 1990, but normalisation has been held up by the issue of prisoners of war, and the presence of opposition groups in each other's country. Another bone of contention is the evacuation of Iraqi planes to Iran to avoid US-led raids during the Gulf War. Iraq says that 115 military and 33 civilian aircraft were flown to Iran, but Tehran puts the number at only 22 and says it would return them if asked to do so by the United Nations. Kharazi was in Beirut Thursday, after visiting Damascus Wednesday on a coordinating mission linked to the crisis in the Middle East. Regular air service between Moscow, Baghdad opens in October. MOSCOW, October 12 (Itar-Tass) - A regular air service of a humanitarian character connecting Moscow and Baghdad opens on October 27. Flights to and >From Baghdad will be performed by planes of the " Vnukovo airlines" company, said Aram Shegunts, Director general of the Committee for international cultural, scientific and business cooperation with Iraq, Shegunts told Tass that each plane flying to Iraq is expected to airlift around five tons of humanitarian cargoes for the Iraqi people who have been under pressure of economic sanctions for nine years now. According to official reports, over 1.5 million Iraqi people, predominantly women, children and elderly people, died in Iraq because of shortages of medications a
Breaking News - 10 October 2000, Web posted 1:00 AM GMT+2
Breaking News - 10 October 2000, Web posted 1:00 AM GMT+2 SEPTEMBER 2000 CLASHES INFORMATION CENTER Palestine: http://www.addameer.org/september2000/ North America: http://nigelparry.com/september2000/ Throughout the West Bank and 1948 Palestinian areas, armed Israeli settlers and Jewish residents are attacking neighborhoods, homes, cars and individuals with rocks, clubs, live ammunition, rubber coated steel bullets, chanting "Death to the Arabs". Eyewitnesses in Jerusalem report that Israeli police threaten to shoot anyone who tries to defend themselves from the attacks. Attacks following the same pattern have been reported thus far in the following areas: In East Jerusalem, Neve Yacoub Nuseibeh Housing Project Terra Santa Housing Project Al 'Ezeriyeh Bir Nabala Al Ram Shufat Beit Hanina Israelis are attempting at this time to burn the Latin Patriarchate Church in Beit Hanina. In Hebron, Palestinian Security forces have announced that Israeli attack helicopters are shooting down at Al Alia Hospital, in addition to Palestinian neighborhoods throughout the Hebron area. 10s of injuries have been reported thus far, including a 16-day-old baby who was injured during helicopter attacks. In Halhoul, reports state that undercover Israeli units and settlers are shooting at Palestinians and their homes. The majority of Palestinian villages located near Israeli settlements throughout the West Bank report that main roads leading to the villages are being closed of by Israeli settlers. The settlers are throwing stones at Palestinian cars and attacking anyone who tries to get out of their car. These villages are under full Israeli control, with no Palestinian Authority jurisdiction. In Khan Younis, Gaza, Palestinian homes were shot at from the direction of nearby Israeli military outposts. In the 1948 Palestinian areas, similar attacks are taking place against Palestinians in: Megiddo Wadi Arra Kfar Yuna Hadar Yousef Hatikva Bat Yan Qaryat Nin Tzderot, Jaffa (Israelis have burnt down a local mosque) In Dimona, at least 200 Israelis have been burning tires and throwing rocks at Palestinian cars driving through the area and attacking Israeli police. In Tiberias, three molotov cocktails were thrown at Israeli police and in Affula, Israelis have been throwing rocks at Israeli police. There are no arab residents in Dimona, Affula and Tiberial. Israeli police have not retaliated against the attacks of the Jewish rioters. Israeli police have sealed off the entrance to Um Al Fahem, preventing anyone from leaving or entering the area. In Tel Aviv this afternoon, Israelis burnt down four Palestinian houses. Reports from Lod also state that Israeli Jewish residents have been attacking Palestinian residents, shooting and attacking homes. In all of the above incidents, attacks are taking place under the protection of Israeli border police, policemen and soldiers. Al-Awda, The Palestine Right to Return Coalition's listserve, is a moderated forum for any individual active in the Palestine right to return campaigns regardless of organizational affiliation if any. Al-Awda develops, coordinates, supports and guides, as needed, global and local grassroots initiatives for action related to the Palestine refugee right to return campaigns. Unless indicated otherwise, all statements on Al-Awda represent the views of their authors and not necessarily those of Al-Awda or its management who may be reached anytime at [EMAIL PROTECTED] For moderation issues, contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, send a blank message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Al-Awda's website may viewed at http://al-awda.org.
Message for Heikki
Dear Heikki, Thank you so very much for your warm greeting with the money for the video "Worth the Price?" I hope you received it already. Please let me know. It is my hope that the video will be useful in your work against the sanctions. With very best wishes, Mark
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 134
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 134 Monday October 9, 2000 LATEST NEWS+++LATEST Iraq's central bank ditches dollars Iraq's central bank has begun to buy European currencies, following Baghdad's decision to stop using the dollar, the INA agency reported. The central bank said in a statement Sunday that it was "disposed to buying European currencies against their equivalent in American dollars". The statement said that "the currencies which will be bought are the French franc, the German mark, the Austrian schilling, the pound sterling, the Dutch florin and the Italian lira". Baghdad, accuses Washington of maintaining the crippling sanctions regime imposed on Iraq for its 1990 invasion of Kuwait. Last month Iraqi Finance Minister Hekmat Ibrahim al-Azzawi announced the decision to ditch the dollar in foreign trade transactions. "The dollar is the currency of an enemy state, and must be abandoned for other currencies, including the euro," Azzawi said. Azzawi urged other countries to snub the dollar, saying the United States was employing an "imperialist" economic policy in league with "Zionists" to weaken the economies of other countries in the world. Iraq will work, in the framework of the Arab League, to "push through a similar Arab measure because it is in the interest of Arabs to renounce the currency of a country hostile to them," he vowed. Iraq's cabinet, chaired by President Saddam Hussein, commissioned a team of economists on September 14 to prepare a study on the possibility of using the euro or any other currency in Iraq's trade instead of the dollar. "The use of the dollar is one of the symbols of the influence and force of our enemy," the cabinet said, adding it was the "job of Iraq to combat the enemy in all fields possible." Saudi waiting for Iraq to agree to open border: minister RIYADH, Oct 9 (AFP) - Saudi Arabia is waiting for Iraq to agree to open a border crossing between the two countries to facilitate trade, according to Defence Minister Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz. The comment came late Saturday after Riyadh asked the United Nations to look into the possibility of opening a border post, which has been shut since Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, to allow humanitarian goods through. The request was passed on Thursday to the UN Sanctions Committee. "In the end the decision rests with Iraq," the prince told reporters. "We have no objection to Saudi companies doing business (with Iraq) in line with Security Council resolutions," he said. In June press reports said the kingdom was considering reopening the desert crossing at Ar'Ar to allow through Saudi goods purchased by Iraq under the UN oil-for-food deal. It allows Iraq to export crude oil under strict UN supervision and to use the proceeds to purchase essential goods. High oil prices have seen Iraq's earnings soar. Since June, Baghdad has sold 220 million barrel of crude for more than 5.5 billion dollars. Iraq bitterly accuses Saudi Arabia and Kuwait of working with the United States and Britain to keep in place the sanctions imposed after it invaded Kuwait in 1990. Saudi Arabia and Kuwait allow US and British warplanes to fly from their bases to monitor the Baghdad regime, leading to frequent bombings of Iraq. Iraq has three land crossings to the outside world through Jordan, Turkey and Syria as well as a sea link to Dubai through the Gulf. The Ar'Ar border post is reopened only once a year to enable Muslims to travel to Mecca for the annual Haj pilgrimage. Iraqi oil output fal
Inhuman and unnecessary - Letter to the editor opposing the sanctions published in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette - 10/7/00
http://www.post-gazette.com/forum/20001007lets9.asp Inhuman and unnecessary Pittsburgh Post Gazette. October 7, 2000. I would like to comment on the Sept. 19 editorial "Sanctions Must Stay." In 1998, the United States withdrew the weapons inspectors so it could bomb Iraq. Tariq Aziz, deputy prime minister of the Republic of Iraq, has since stated that if the sanctions are lifted, Iraq will allow the inspectors to resume their work. And the former U.N. arms inspector who aggressively pursued disarmament in Iraq, Scott Ritter, recently stated that he believes Iraq is qualitatively disarmed and the Security Council should reassess its position. A careful reading of the latest U.N. Resolution regarding Iraq makes it clear that sanctions will not be automatically lifted if the inspectors are readmitted. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright's statement that Saddam Hussein can let himself out of the sanction box by letting the inspectors in is a lie. There is no rational excuse for maintaining economic sanctions that are killing Iraqi children at the rate of one every six minutes. The editorial states that Iraq has been able to buy billions of dollars worth of food and medicine with the oil for food money. In fact, out of these proceeds, Iraq is paying $400 million per month compensation in war reparations to Kuwait and others who lost property during the Gulf war. What is left amounts to about 70 cents per Iraqi per day. And billions of dollars worth of medical and food supplies requested by Iraq have been blocked by the sanctions committee under pressure from the United States. During the Gulf war, the U.S.-led allied forces deliberately destroyed the infrastructure in Iraq needed to produce clean water. Since then, the sanctions have blocked the importation of equipment needed to rebuild this infrastructure and the importation of medicines with which to combat the waterborne diseases that are now killing thousands of Iraqis, mostly children. The statements I am making are contradicted by information put out by the State Department, but I believe that my sources are credible and that my statements are based in fact. Iraq is often called the cradle of civilization. If the economic sanctions are not soon ended, the ashes of Iraq will be the deathbed of our humanity. MARK L. CLEMENT Farmington, Pa. Editor's note: The writer is a member of the Bruderhof Communities, a group of Christian pacifist communities. His family is hosting a child from Iraq, Mariam Hamza, who is in the United States for medical treatment.
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 133
on, liberating some other parts of the regime, it could only be on the clear understanding that full-scale monitoring is returned to Iraq so that we can see what they're doing in their missile, nuclear, chemical and biological activities." Butler's Policy Proposal: MR. BUTLER: -- look, the gut point would be, in exchange for getting monitoring back into Iraq, that sanctions would be different from what they are now -- they've almost gone now -- but that there would be clear sanctions on military goods. Would Iraq accept that deal? I don't know, but I -- SEN. LEVIN: And their own leadership -- not just on the military goods; it's also on their own leadership -- MR. BUTLER: Yeah. Well -- SEN. LEVIN: -- business transactions -- you'd use those. MR. BUTLER: Yes, that's right. --___ Stratfor is a US "business intelligence" company. They provide a free daily "global intelligence update" by e-mail. The following is that for 3 October. I am adding this forward as they are incorrect when they claim, at the end, that Iraq's democratic opposition has not seen one dollar of the scant $97 million earmarked for the opposition by the 1998 Iraq Liberation Act. Some of this money has been disbursed to a number of opposition groups. It has been used, however, for "non-lethal" activities (e.g. training in office management). Some Iraqi opposition groups, most notably the SCIRI (Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq), have refused to accept US money, fearing that it would fatally damage their credibility. A reference for the above would be the BBC's 28 June 2000 story, "Gore: Saddam must go", available at: http://news6.thdo.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/americas/newsid%5F809000/809168 .stm Best, Colin Rowat It is worth noting Khidir Hamza's policy proposal: "lift all sanctions from Iraq-provided Baghdad permits its senior nuclear scientists and their families to immigrate to the West." (Jonathan Broder, "Saddam's Bomb," The New York Times Magazine, 1 October 2000, pg. 43 http://www.nytimes.com/magazine/20001001mag-saddam.html) If Hamza was in fact the director-general of Iraq's nuclear weapons program (and was able to give accurate "detailed briefings" to the CIA, Broder, pg. 43), then he knew the nuclear program's details and perhaps also those of the chemical, biological, and ballistic missile programs. Program knowledge would have most likely meant know from whom Iraq acquired non-conventional weapons-directed materials and technology, how that acquisition occurred, and what Iraq did to hide what it did not want known (both before and during UNSCOM's inspections). Assume that Hamza probably knew about Iraq's acquisition and concealment. Hamza still advocates lifting "all sanctions" [quotes for Broder's words] in conjunction with expert immigration. Hamza seems to suggest that current sanctions in and of themselves do not, as the U.S. and UK governments claim, "contain" or impact the Iraqi Government's ability to significantly re-constitute non-conventional programs and weapons. _ Dear Friends of Iraq, Mariam Hamza has been in the US since August 14 and will be here, with her grandmother, for several weeks still. She will be undergoing more tests soon to determine the status of her leukemia. Both Mariam and her grandmother love phone calls. So if you speak Arabic and would like to talk with Mariam and her grandmother just let me know and I will set up a time for you to call them. Best wishes, Mark Clement www.mariamappeal.com Long Live Palestine - http://listen.to/Long_Live_Palestine "Some call them radicals. Others call them the Opposition. President Clinton referred to them on various occasions as the "enemies of peace". Yet, for many Palestinians, they represent the non-compromising segment of the living conscience of Palestine. So before we rush to judge and to condemn, before we describe them as radicals and enemies of peace, we must listen to their story. The story of suffering through Black September, South Lebanon and the Intifadah. Once we listen, I believe, all that we can do is to stand for them and salute, salute them for a heavy price they have paid, rather than those who took the easy way out." - Ramzy Baroud tel: +44 (0)20 7403 5200 fax: +44 (0)20 7403 3823 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] web: www.mariamappeal.com
Eye Injuries from Israeli Bullets - The Union of Palestinian Medical Relief Committees
this is UPMRC's latest report The Union of Palestinian Medical Relief Committees SPECIAL REPORT Eye Injuries from Israeli Bullets October 5, 2000 Ziad Ahmed Farrah clearly remembers being 100 meters away from Israeli soldiers at Rachel's Tomb in Bethlehem when one of them fired a rubber-coated steel bullet into his left eye. "I was hit in my eye and my arm," Ziad says, "my friends carried me about 50 meters to the ambulance. I arrived at the eye hospital at exactly 5:30 PM on Saturday." Ziad is one of eighteen patients who have come to St. John's Ophthalmologic Hospital in East Jerusalem since Friday, September 29, with eye injuries sustained in Israeli attacks against Palestinian civilians. Seven patients here, including Ziad, have lost their left eyes. The hospital report on Ziad states that the bullet "caused multiple scleral lacerations, and the contents of the eye had already been expelled when he was admitted. He also sustained fractures of the lateral wall of the orbit and frontal sinus." One of the nurses explains, "All we can do for him now is to repair the fractures and fit him for an artificial eye. We will try to match the color of the other eye." Ziad is twenty years old. He will have only one eye to see through for the rest of his life. Yet his spirit is far from broken. A plumber from Deheisheh Refugee Camp near Bethlehem, he wonders where peace is when Israeli settlements continue to expand while Palestinian refugees here and abroad are forbidden to return home. He went to Rachel's Tomb on Friday and Saturday to protest the Israeli army and police attacks on Palestinians in the Haram Al-Sharif. Those attacks killed six Palestinians and injured hundreds of worshippers who had been praying at Al-Aqsa Mosque. "Our soul is in Al-Aqsa," Ziad explains. Despite his injury, Ziad does not feel sorry for himself. He follows the news closely, and his heart is with Palestinians who have lost even more than he has in Israeli attacks. "I saw the 12-year-old boy who was shot by the Israeli army in Gaza while his father tried to protect him," he says, "This is criminal, dirty." Showing his compassion, Ziad gets up from his bed to cheer up 12-year-old Shaadi who has been in the hospital since Thursday. Shaadi's parents cannot get from Jenin to Jerusalem to visit him since the army has closed off the roads. Another 12-year-old child, Ala' Imad, is at St. John's after being shot in the eye with a rubber-coated steel bullet. The hospital report states that his left eye "was perforated twice, with the contents expelled, and the bullet caused fractures in the medial aspect and floor of the orbit. It has lodged in the maxilliary sinus and could be seen in the upper jaw, protruding behind the teeth." This is the kind of catastrophic damage that 'rubber' bullets inflict when fired from close range at a person's face. The Ophthalmologic Hospital of Gaza is seeing similar injuries among children hit with rubber-coated steel bullets. Eight children are currently in the hospital with injuries from Israeli bullets, and a total of nine patients have lost their eyes. Among them are 15-year-old Ramadan Salwat, who lost one eye while the other was seriously injured by a rubber-coated steel bullet. Doctors are trying to repair the injured eye, but it is likely that Ramadan will remain blind. Other patients shot in the eye include 12-year-old Abdel-Rahman An-Nadi, 12-year-old Ibrahim Abu-Mursa, 12-year-old Amjad Mazeed, 13-year old Taher Awad, and 14-year-old Ahmad Abed. In all of these cases, the doctors say that the injuries could only have been inflicted by bullets aimed directly at the heads of these children. Back in Jerusalem, Ziad Farrah is upset over the loss of his own eye, but even more offended by the continued military assault on Palestinian civilians, many younger than himself. He appeals to a rule of justice and morality that ought to transcend any one religious or nationalistic code. "I want to say to the soldier who shot me, 'You would not want someone to shoot your son, so you should not shoot a young person who is someone else's son.'" One should not need eyes at all to see the justice of Ziad's statement and the massive injustice of hurling brutal and often deadly force against civilians. Yet as the indiscriminate use of military force against Palestinians continues, one wonders if the Israeli army is not blinder than the children who have lost eyes to their bullets. To view all of the UPMRC's Emergency Appeals and updates regarding the Israeli army's use of force against Palestinians over the past eight days, visit the UPMRC website at http://www.upmrc.org. For further information please contact Dr. Mustafa Barghouthi at 050-254218 or the UPMRC office at 02-583-3510/ 02-583-4021. P L E A S E F O R W A R D T H I S N E W S L E T T E R T O E V E R Y O N EY O UK N O W "Some call them radicals. Others call them the Opposition
This is a must read
http://www.arabia.com/article/0,1690,News|30332,00.html It takes more than man to torment a nation "It's a war zone, it's a war zone, the only difference between what's taking place here and a real war is that it's a war from one side, Israel's side" By Ramzy Baroud October 04, 2000, 04:03 PM SEATTLE (AROL) - "Listen ..listen.. can you hear that?" My friend cried out with a trembling voice as I waited on the line, trying to make sense of the rush of sounds coming from the other end. "That's an Israeli helicopter firing missiles at Khan Yunis refugee camp," he screamed, "there's another one... I have to go, I must wait with the people outside." Cries From a Battle Zone He hurried outside to gather in the camp's graveyard, south of Gaza City. It seems that gathering in the graveyard has become a ritual for them, a graveyard that is now riddled with scars left by random shooting. They also gather there to bury their dead. Another friend, a nurse at Makased Hospital in Jerusalem's Intensive Care Unit appeared more content as his experiences seem to have become a devastating routine. "I worked in the intensive care Friday," he began. "Six injured young men were brought in the morning. None survived." he lamented. A third, "it's a war zone, it's a war zone, the only difference between what's taking place here and a real war is that it's a war from one side, Israel's side" adding "Israel is shelling us with missiles, can you believe it? They are shooting rockets at the refugee camps in Gaza. They bombarded Gaza's community college. No space is left for the injured, they had to operate on people in small clinics. They barely have aspirin in these clinics. Our children are filling the streets like slaughtered sheep. Are you writing this down? Like slaughtered sheep.." Who's to Blame for the Violence? Most of us find it comforting to hold one reason or one person responsible for such tragedies. Others prefer the "both are responsible" approach, a diplomatic way to escape the burden of accountability that comes with confronting the truth. Unlike what many have concluded, the continuous violence is not simply an outcome of Israeli hard liner Ariel Sharon's "visit" to Al Haram Al Sharif (the Noble Sanctuary), one of Islam's holiest sites. Yes, Sharon is a well known war criminal, that's uncontested. It's also true that a trail of blood seems to be accompanying the champion of the Jewish settlers. But it's utterly unfair to give the man all the credit for the deaths of nearly 70 Palestinians and well over two thousand injuries. Many others share the crime, and they too must be recognized. Would Sharon have succeeded in assembling 1,000 Israeli soldiers and police to accompany him on his disgraceful visit to the Muslim sites in Jerusalem if it wasn't for the Israeli government's approval? Supposing that Sharon succeeded in ordering 1,000 heavily armed Israeli soldiers and police to join him on his controversial trip, and then ordering them to kill 5 worshipers and injure hundreds more, how can one explain the violent events developing in the West Bank and Gaza? Sharon, a Criminal Face Among Many It wasn't Sharon who ordered the killing of scores of Palestinian protesters, many of whom were children. It isn't Sharon who is shelling Palestinian refugee camps with Apache helicopters, nor is he the one who killed 12-year-old Mohammed al Durah, while he clung to his father's knee and wept. What about the shoot-to-kill policy carried out by the Israeli army throughout the West Bank, Gaza and Arab towns in Israel? Though such a policy might be denied verbally, medical statistics in the Palestinian territories prove its validity. 80 percent of injured Palestinians received bullets in the upper parts of their bodies according to the Palestinian Minister of Health, Riyadh Zanoun, in an interview with Voice of Palestine radio. Israeli Lieutenant-General Shaul Mofaz, the Israeli Chief of Staff who oversaw the Israeli army's retreat from Lebanon, appeared to be determined in recent months to deploy heavy armories into Palestinian territories, anticipating a unilateral declaration of Palestinian statehood. Israeli settlements were flooded with supplies, even sand bags were brought to Gaza's Jewish settlements. Israel's muscle flexing was aimed at instituting fear in the hearts of Palestinians, as the option of armed struggle reemerged following Israel's defeat in South Lebanon. Israel wanted to reinforce its tainted image of the undefeatable army at any cost, and as quickly as possible. Recent Palestinian protests in May were dealt with swiftly by the Israeli army. Six Palestinians were killed and nearly 900 hundred were injured. With the suppression of protests by the PA police, the violence would have carried on, and Israeli soldiers were fully equipped and ready "to teach a lesson". A Political Message is also Be
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 130
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 130 Monday, October 2, 2000 LATEST NEWS Turkish drought worsens regional water row: Iraq and Syria say new dams threaten supply >From THE GUARDIAN, October 2nd, 2000 After the driest summer in 20 years, Turkish officials are warning that they cannot supply Syria with all the water it wants from the Euphrates and Tigres rivers. The announcement will cause concern in the Middle East, where water is one of the most sensitive strategic issues. Under an informal agreement, Syria is supposed to receive 500 cubic metres of water per second from the two rivers as they cross the border from Turkey. This month, however, the average flow has been only 160 cubic metres per second, and next month it could be even less. The water levels in Turkish reservoirs have become dangerously low, and Turkey is bracing for a winter of severe energy shortages. The head of the state water authority, Dogan Altinbilek, has said that the amount of water Turkey can send across the border will depend on rainfall in the next few months. Syria and Iraq, which is also downstream from Turkey, complain that Ankara's ambitious programme of dam-building on the Euphrates and the Tigres is a threat to their water supply. Turkey, however, insists that the shortages have nothing to do with the dams, which officials in Ankara say have improved the situation. Syria would have received only about 50 cubic metres [per second] if there had been no dams on the rivers,' Mr Altinbilek said. Water has been a contentious issue between Turkey and its neighbours for years. Sproadic talks on the issue have failed to reach any formal agreement. Turkey insists that there is more than enough water in the two rivers for all three countries, but it claims both Syria and Iraq waste supplies because of inefficient water management and poor agricultural techniques. In turn, Damascus and Baghdad accuse Turkey of trying to dictate terms. The lack of an agreement on water sharing has been one of the main points emphasised by opponents in Britain of the proposed Ilisu dam, which would be one of the biggest dams in the region. The British government is still considering whether to grant Balfour Beatty export credit guarantees worth pounds 200m to build the dam on the Tigres, a few miles north of the Syrian border. Current signs are that the plan has run into serious difficulties. If the drought intensifies, Turkey's use of water on the two most important rivers in the region will come under even closer scrutiny. Some strategic analysts have predicted that water, rather than oil or land, could be the spark which ignites a future war in the Middle East. A court last week acquitted a Turkish journalist who had been charged with insulting the military in her banned book on the Kurdish rebel war. The case was seen as a test of Ankara's intentions to improve its poor human rights record. Amnesty International called the verdict 'a step forward for freedom of expression', but said the trial should 'never have taken place'. Nadire Mater had faced up to 12 years in prison if convicted. Unless the prosecutor appeals against Friday's verdict, the ban on Mehmet's Book, which recounts the horrors and frustrations of recruits fighting Kurdish rebels, will be lifted in seven days. Muslims Set Political Goals at Irvine Rally More than 100 people at daylong conference brainstorm ways to increase community's clout in U.S. system and November elections. >From LOS ANGELES TIMES, October 1st, 2000 Calling themselves a "sleeping giant," Muslims gathered Saturday in Irvine to brainstorm ways to increase their clout in the U.S. political system and the November elections. A bipartisan slate of speakers--from Rep. Tom Campbell (R-San Jose) to California Democratic Party Chairman Art Torres--encouraged Muslims to register to vote, volunteer on campaigns, donate money and forge personal relationships with elected officials. In the daylong conference, Muslims debated political strategies, including organizing a bloc vote for the presidential election focused on California and 13 other states with many Muslim residents. "What we're hoping to accomplish is our full rights of citizenship," said Agha Saeed, a UC Berkeley political science professor and head of American Muslim Alliance, which sponsored the gathering. The alliance is promoting the goal "2000 for 2000," aimed at finding 2,000 Muslim candidates to run for office this year. In six years, Saeed has built the group into a national political organization of 7,000 members, with 93 chapters in 31 states. He also helped establish the American Muslim Political Coordinating Committee, an alliance of four major Muslim organizations that expects to deliver the community's first presidential endorsement two weeks before the election. Although the size of the Muslim American community is not precisely known, estimates range from 3 million to 10 million. Saeed said the number of registered
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 132
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 132 Thursday October 5, 2000 LATEST+++ (The editor apologises for today's late delivery - but that also means that the latest news is included..!) Emirates plane arrives in Iraq BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) _ In a first by a Gulf Arab state, the United Arab Emirates sent a plane to Baghdad Thursday to demonstrate its opposition to U.N. sanctions imposed on Iraq for its 1990 invasion of Kuwait. The Boeing 777, carrying 40 doctors, nurses and 10 tons of humanitarian supplies, was met by Iraqi Labor and Social Affairs Minister, Lt. Gen. Saadi Tu'ma, and Trade Minister Mohammed Mehdi Saleh. ``The president, government and people of the United Arab Emirates want to express our support for our Iraqi brethren and soften their burden,'' said Health Minister Hamad Abdul Rahman al-Madfa on arrival in Baghdad. The plane is the fifth by an Arab state to fly to Iraq since France and Russia sent flights to Iraq nearly two weeks ago. But while Paris and Moscow merely notified the U.N. Sanctions Committee of their flights and did not wait for approval, flights by Arab states, including Thursday's, waited for U.N. authorization before departing to Iraq. The recent flights have prompted Iraqi officials to declare that the U.S.-supported sanctions regime is crumbling. The United Arab Emirates, which restored diplomatic relations with Baghdad last year after a 10 year rupture, was the first Gulf Arab state to do so and has been vociferous in demanding the lifting of sanctions. It has also become one of Iraq's major trading partners, with the Iraqi Trade Ministry estimating bilateral trade at nearly half dlrs 500 million annually. The embargo against Iraq can only be lifted after Iraq proves that it has destroyed all its weapons of mass destruction and the capability to manufacture them. Baghdad says it has complied, but refuses to cooperate with U.N. arms inspectors. Saddam ready 'to destroy Zionism' >From JERUSALEM POST, October 5th, 2000 LONDON - Iraqi President Saddam Hussein this week warned that Iraq could destroy Israel if it had access to land adjacent to the Jewish state, according to the state-controlled Iraqi media yesterday. Saddam was quoted as saying that Iraq could quickly extinguish Zionism if it was given a piece of land next to Israel, leading analysts to speculate that Saddam might possess non-conventional warheads for his short-range missiles. Saddam is reported to be enraged about the latest clashes between Israel and the Palestinians, whom he counts among his most ardent supporters, and was shown on Iraqi television bashing his fist on a table in anger. He criticized fellow Arab leaders for not doing enough to support the Palestinians. At the same time, he said that the "great people of Iraq are ready to destroy Zionism immediately," and called on Arabs to "brandish your swords and make the necessary sacrifices." 1,000 stateless Arabs protest on Kuwait-Iraq border SAFWAN, Iraq, Oct 5 (AFP) - More than 1,000 stateless Arabs demanding the right to return to Kuwait from Iraq briefly ventured over border markers on Thursday, an AFP journalist reported. Helicopters from the 1,309-strong UN Iraq-Kuwait Observers Mission (UNIKOM) hovered over the area while personnel observed the protest, the second since Tuesday, in the demilitarised zone (DMZ) between the two countries. The protestors, venting their anger at Kuwaiti authorities they accuse of expelling them from the emirate after the 1991 Gulf War, overstepped several UNIKOM-regulated boundary markers, around kilometre 92. To cries of "Kuwait is our country", the protestors went by bus to UNIKOM headquarters in the border town of Umm Qasr where they delivered a letter condemning Kuwait's refusal to repatriate them, organisers said. "We are determined to stay at the border until our demands have been met," Shalaan al-Shammari, president of the the committee for stateless Arabs in Iraq, told AFP. Scores of elite Kuwaiti troops moved up to the border with Iraq on Tuesday amid a red alert to stop any bid by the stateless Arabs -- known as "bidoon" in Arabic, meaning "without" -- to cross the frontier. The protestors have erected 38 tents about 60 metres from the border line, in violation of UNIKOM border rules. Kuwait has dismissed the protest as a propaganda stunt by Iraqi agents, orchestrated by Baghdad. Offfials in the emirate accused the prote
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 131
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 131 Tuesday October 3, 2000 Minister says oil agreement with Iraq to be renewed Engineer Wa'il Sabri, minister of energy and mineral resources, said the oil agreement between Jordan and Iraq will be renewed in Baghdad in mid-November. In a statement to `Al-Arab-al-Yawm', Sabri said that he will leave for the Iraqi capital mid-November to meet his Iraqi counterpart, Oil Minister Amir Muhammad Rashid. At that time they will sign the new agreement for the year 2001... Source: 'Al-Arab al-Yawm', Amman, in Arabic 28 Sep 00 Russians to defy UN ban by resuming flights to Iraq >From THE GUARDIAN, October 3rd, 2000 By EWEN MACASKILL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR Russia is set to clash with the US and Britain at the UN security council this week after confirming it is to revive its scheduled flights to Iraq. Britain and the US regard the Russian move as breaching the sanctions regime imposed against the Iraqi president, Saddam Hussein, for trying to take over Kuwait and starting the 1990-91 Gulf war. A Russian spokesman tried a different interpretation yesterday, claiming commercial flights were not covered by UN resolutions against Iraq. Scheduled passenger flights between Moscow and Baghdad would drive a hole through the crumbling sanctions regime and encourage President Saddam to continue to defy the west. There have been individual flights from Russia and France in the last month, but scheduled flights would be a big change. Iraq's minister for transport, Ahmed Murtada Ahmed Khalil, on a visit to Iran yesterday, disclosed that Aeroflot, would be resuming commercial flights in a fortnight. He asked the Iranian government to allow the Russians to use its airspace, according to the Iranian news agency, Irna. An Aeroflot spokeswoman had said in Moscow earlier in the day that the 51% state-owned carrier intended to resume flights to Iraq. It had signed a memorandum of understanding with Iraqi Airways, she said, but gave no indication at that point of when the service would start. In London, a Foreign Office source said last night: 'The resumption of scheduled flights amounts to a resumption of trading relations, and that would be a breach of sanctions.' As well as trying to shore up the sanctions regime, the US and Britain also send their warplanes over northern and southern Iraq, denying air space to Iraqi fighters. The resumption of Russian commercial flights would complicate an already tense and dangerous situation. Both Russia and France - eager to do business with Iraq - have tried at the UN to persuade the US and Britain to end the no-fly zones, set up after Baghdad cracked down on northern Iraq's Kurds and southern Iraq's Shi'ites following the Gulf war. A Russian spokesman in London defended the decision to resume flights: 'According to our point of view, nothing in the resolution of the security council forbids it.' A British-inspired resolution was passed at the UN security council last December holding out the possibility of a compromise over sanctions but Baghdad has rejected it. The new move by Russia, the country's London spokesman said, should be taken as a signal that the world community must act to overcome this impasse: 'We have to do something.' The US and Britain have become increasingly isolated this year. While the international community feels repugnance towards President Saddam, there is also a growing sense that sanctions and the no-fly zone are hurting civilians rather than the regime. Britain has shown signs of wilting but the US, especially in a presidential election year, has remained resolute. Opponents of sanctions claimed that the US secretary of state, Madeleine Albright, who was in Paris yesterday, threatened France that any country flying to Iraq would be denied the right to fly to the US. A Russian source said he had heard of such a threat but dismissed it as 'rhetoric'. In Cairo, the Syrian president, Bashar Assad, and the Egyptian president, Hosni Mubarak, were asked whether they were considering resuming flights to Iraq, following the lead of France, Russia, Yemen and Jordan in challenging the UN sanctions by sending individual flights styled as humanitarian. Mr Mubarak said that if there was private sector interest, his government would not object. DESPITE U.S. OPPOSITION, HUSSEIN IN `GREAT SHAPE' >From CHICAGO TRIBUNE, October 2nd, 2000 By John Diamond, Washington Bureau. The U.S. strategy of containment against Iraq is unraveling amid rising oil prices, bickering among allies and concern about the suffering of the Iraqi people. President Saddam Hussein's hold on power is as strong as ever. Using money diverted from the UN-sanctioned oil-for-food program, his military has begun to rebuild from the damage sustained in the Persian Gulf war. The surge in fuel prices suddenly places the West in the awkward posture of beseeching Iraq not to cut crude oil production. "Make no mistake about it. Iraq is awash with money," said Richard B
PROTESTS TO BE HELD IN CITIES ACROSS NORTH AMERICA - ISRAELI PERPETRATED MASSACRE
Al-Awda, Palestine Right to Return Coalition For Immediate Release *ISRAELI PERPETRATED MASSACRE *PROTESTS TO BE HELD IN CITIES ACROSS NORTH AMERICA Demonstrations are planned in cities across North America to protest Israel's ongoing massacre of Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip. More than thirty Palestinians have been killed, as of October 1, including at least seven children, by murderous Israeli occupation troops who have gone on an uncontrolled rampage. More than one thousand others have been injured by anti-tank missiles, live ammunition, plastic-coated steel bullets, and tear gas. The bloodshed began on Thursday, September 28, after Israeli General Ariel Sharon forced his way into the Haram Al-Sharif, Islam's holiest site in Jerusalem, accompanied by 1,000 heavily armed occupation troops. Palestinians protesting this provocation have been brutally suppressed by the occupying army. *In one of the most horrifying scenes shown on world television, 12-year old Muhammad Al-Dura was shot dead in cold blood by an Israeli sniper, while his father, Jamal, was trying to protect him from the hail of Israeli bullets. A Palestinian ambulance driver, Bassam al-Bilbeisi, who attempted to rescue the two was also shot dead by the Israeli sniper. Jamal Al-Dura remains critically injured in hospital. *In another alarming development, on Sunday, October 1, Israeli occupation forces began firing anti-tank missiles at a Palestinian Authority post near a heavily populated civilian neighborhood in the occupied Gaza Strip, killing a ten-year-old child and injuring at least 30 people. It is worth recalling that Ariel Sharon was the mastermind behind Israel's 1982 invasion of Lebanon, which claimed more than 20,000 Palestinian and Lebanese lives, and the notorious massacres of thousands of Palestinian men, women and children at the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps in Lebanon, the same year. In October 1990, occupation forces massacred 17 worshippers at the Haram Al-Sharif, and again stormed the compound in September 1996, killing three. Al-Awda/the Palestine Right to Return Coalition strongly urges all peace-loving people to protest the ongoing massacres and to demand that the United States government immediately stop providing the weapons to Israel which are used to massacre civilians. WHERE THE PROTESTS ARE: New York: Monday, October 2, 2000; The Consulate General of Israel in New York, 800 2nd Avenue (between 42nd and 43rd St.), New York, NY, 10017 Tel. (212) 499-5410 Fax (212) 499-5425, 12 to 2 pm. For more info contact Al-Awda Palestine Right to Return Coalition NY/NJ: [EMAIL PROTECTED] or International Action Center [EMAIL PROTECTED] San Francisco: Tuesday October 3rd, 2000 In front of the Israeli embassy in San Francisco, 456 Montgomery St. From 12:00 to 1:00 PM. For directions on how to get to the embassy, see: www.Israelemb.org/sanfran. For more Information call American Muslims for Global Peace and Justice 408-988-1011, email [EMAIL PROTECTED] or Al-Awda SF at [EMAIL PROTECTED] UC Berkeley: Monday, Oct. 2 (details to be announced). Ann Arbor, Michigan: 12 noon Monday, Oct. 2, Michigan Union steps. 530 South State Street, Ann Arbor. For more info write to Al-Awda Michigan: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Philadelphia: In front of Israeli Consulate 230 S. 15th St. (between Walnut and Locust). Tuesday October 3, 4 PM. Contact: Al-Awda Pennsylvania [EMAIL PROTECTED], Shouki Kassis 610-6661411 or Tawfiq Barqawi 609 685 9898, Anan Zahr 610-459-8498. Washington DC: Details will be posted as soon as they become available from Al-Awda DC. Montreal: Meet in front of the Concordia Hall building on Monday, 2nd of October at 3:00 PM and proceed to the Israeli Consulate on Rene Levesque. For more info contact SPHR [EMAIL PROTECTED] Houston: Demonstration 3:30 PM Sunday 10/1/00 Gathering will be at Cedar's Mediterranean Cafe & Restaurant 4703 Richmond Ave, (just inside the 610 Loop). For more info contact The Arab American Student Association and the Arab community in greater Houston Raleigh, NC: Tuesday October 3, in front of State Capitol. For information contact Al-Awda NC c/o Rania Masri at [EMAIL PROTECTED] Chapel Hill, NC: For information contact Al-Awda NC c/o Rania Masri at [EMAIL PROTECTED] Los Angeles: Monday October 2, 2000, The Israel Consulate 6380 Wilshire Blvd. (Main Cross Street is Fairfax) Los Angeles, CA. Time: 12 - 1 PM, Directions: from HWY 10 take Fairfax exit and go North till Wilshire Blvd. Go left on Wilshire, Consulate will be on your left. From HWY 405 take Wilshire exit and go East before you reach Fairfax, consulate will be on your right. For more information contact Palestinian Right of Return Task Force/ADC : (714)6361232 or (714)9042212. New Haven CT: Sunday October 1, 2000. Meeting Point: At 5:30 Church and Chapel, Downtown New Haven to be followed at 6:30 by a gathering at Lieberman's house. 2 PM meeting in Orange to prepare signs and placards. Call 213-397-0067 f
For a frame by frame picture of the murder of the 12yr. old boy Rami alDura click on the link below
For a frame by frame picture of the murder of the 12yr. old boy Rami alDura click on the link below and please forward as wide as possible this gruelsome witness to Zionist terrorism. http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/arabic/news/newsid_951000/951469.stm should anyone forget.
-Monica Tarazi - Report from Jerusalem by Monica Tarazi
I wrote this last night when I got home from Jerusalem. It's neither clever nor analytical. But it's what I saw. And what I saw was heartbreaking. -Monica Tarazi _ And They Call This Peace... Today, I went to Jerusalem. It was devastating. I was with a group of Palestinians from Haifa and its surrounding area. We were there for a conference which was canceled because of the `incidents' as the conference organizers put it with ironic understatement. So with little else to do given the general strike that shut Ramallah down completely, and wanting to do something practical to help, we decided to venture into Jerusalem and do just about the only thing you can do here without risking your life when there are demonstrations against the occupation outside every refugee camp and at every checkpoint. We went to the Makassed hospital in East Jerusalem to donate blood. The drive from Ramallah to the Makassed hospital in Jerusalem should take around half an hour. Just over an hour after leaving Ramallah, and having driven through settlement after settlement (because the only roads the Israelis left open were the settlement roads), we finally got close to the hospital only to be stopped by a row of Israeli soldiers standing in a line blocking the road and facing off with a few dozen Palestinian youths who were gathered around 50 years away. The soldiers were, as usual, heavily armed. They had about a dozen jeeps and several vans. The Palestinians, again as usual, had only stones. There were a couple burning tires in the road. Every now and then a Palestinian threw a stone in the direction of the soldiers (who were too far away to actually be hit), and then retreated but to his friends. I bumped into L., a German girl I know who lives and works at the Lutheran hospital down the street from the Makassed. "This has been going on all night," she told me wearily. "Yesterday it took me 3 hours to get from over there to here because the whole road was blocked." She pointed in the direction of the Makassed, about 150 yards away. She continued, "they (the soldiers) came into the hospital last night and were shooting insidewere had several of the boys die in here." she added, by way of explanation. Boys. They're killing boys. After a few minutes spent gaping in horror, we got back into our bus and cars and turned around. We drove about 20 minutes through the side streets until we finally reached the Makassed. As we drove to the front of the hospital we could hear shooting. The Israeli occupation forces were apparently getting bored just standing there and decided to take things up a notch. More shots, and an ambulance zoomed past sirens wailing. With her usual impeccable time, my mother called. I though about lying about where I was, but realized that she would be able to see through my fib - if not from my voice, then from the gunshots and ambulance sirens. I said I'd call back later. We were greeted at the hospital by an official looking man who guided us led us up the stairs to the rooms where the injured were being treated. The first man we met had been hit, by a rubber-coated bullet I think, in the head. He looked drowsy and his head was covered in bandages. He was about 25 years old. Someone from our group said a few words of support, and we moved on. In the next room was a man was lying with a bandage across is face. He was lucky: his eye had been blown off. If he had been a few inches to the right, the bullet would probably have entered his brain. In the next room was a young man who had been shot in the hand. The room after that housed a man who had been shot in the stomach. "He's in very bad shape," whispered a doctor. Stating the obvious slightly he added, "it's not good to be shot in the stomach." Downstairs the injuries were worse. A 13 year old girl shot in the stomach. A man shot in the head. Another had been shot in the heart. They didn't think he'd last the night. I stopped listening after that. Another room, another patient in agony, another family suffering in silence. And then another. And another. All the while, we could hear the sirens screaming as the ambulances entered the hospital. And we could still here the shooting. We went outside to the hospital's Emergency Entrance. There were probably two dozen people there, some in uniform, some not. One man had a megaphone which he was using to give orders to everyone in sight. Everyone seemed to have a cell phone which seemed strange until I realized that they were using them to communicate with the ambulances and the various taxis acting as ambulances. "There's one coming! Clear the way! Clear the Street!" ordered the man with the megaphone. "Only doctors can approach the car!" An ambulance roared in. They hospital staffed pulled out a young man with bandages around his arm. Someone yelled to alert the man with the megaphone to the arrival of another vehicle. Again Mr. Megaphone
Hussein Al-Athamy Coming to the USA
Please ForwardPlease Post *** Hussein Al-Athamy and the Tchalghi Baghdadi [HATB] in the USA The guru of Iraqi Maqaam singing, Hussein Al-Athamy is coming to the USA to tour Cambridge, MA and Washington, D.C. Mr. Al-Athamy's powerful tenor voice and his mastering of the most challenging form of Arabic singing, the Iraqi Maqaam, make him currently the best performer of classical music in the Arab world and the non-Arab Middle East. Al-Athamy is accompanied by master Oud player, Ali Al-Imam (from the musical school of Munir Bashir) and the young talented (female) Jawza player, Dalia Yakob. Coming all the way from Iraq, the group's presence is a unique event that will never be erased from one's memory for a long time. Join us in Cambridge, Mass. to enjoy this musical event at the beautiful Cambridge Multi Cultural Arts Center, which is designed with an Abbassid-like architecture of medieval Baghdad. Sponsored by Institute of Near Eastern & African Studies (INEAS) Mesopotamia Cultural Society Royal Jordanian Airlines Co-Sponsored by Georgetown University Contemporary Arab Studies American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) Francis & Mitchel Kurkur Linda & George Michael To arrange for an interview with the Iraqi Ensemble or a lecture/demostration, please contact Wafaa' Salman at (617) 864-6327 or (617) 486-9232. Cambridge, Mass Place: Cambridge Multi Cultural Art Center Address: 41 Second Street, Cambridge, Mass. Date & Time: Saturday October 14th at 8:00 PM Ticket Prices: $35, $50 For reservations in Mass., contact INEAS at: Institute of Near Eastern & African Studies (INEAS) P.O. Box 425709 Cambridge, MA 02142 USA Tel (617) 86-INEAS (864-6327) Fax (617) 323-5950 Website: www.INEAS.org E-Mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Washington D.C. Place: Georgetown University Intercultural Auditorium Date & Time: Thursday November 9th at 7:00 PM Ticket Prices: $20, $35, $50 For reservations in DC, contact Feryal at: American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) Tel (202) 244-2990 We accept Visa and MasterCard
NYC: Protest Israeli Aggression Monday!
Students United for a Responsible Global Environment - www.unc.edu/surge ** Please Forward ** From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] The International Action Center urges people to attend this important demonstration to protest the Israeli attacks on Palestinians protesting Sharon's "visit" to al-Aqsa Mosque. Palestinian Right to Return Coalition Spread the word! When: Monday, October 2, 2000 Where: The Consulate General of Israel in New York, 800 2nd Avenue (between 42nd and 43rd St.), New York, NY, 10017 Tel. (212) 499-5410Fax (212) 499-5425 What time: 12 to 2 pm WHY: To protest Sharon's "visit" to al-Aqsa Mosque which has resulted in violations of Palestinian human rights, the massacres of Palestinians, and the continued atrocities being committed NOW!!! To show that we deplore the Israeli governments' actions regardless of where we live Palestinian lives are not so easily taken. ***SPREAD THE WORD***SPREAD THE WORD***SPREAD THE WORD** International Action Center 39 West 14th Street, Room 206 New York, NY 10011 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] web: www.iacenter.org CHECK OUT THE NEW SITE www.mumia2000.org phone: 212 633-6646 fax: 212 633-2889
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 129
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 129 Friday, September 29, 2000 LATESTLATEST+++ Saddam grabs the limelight with oil warnings >From MIDDLE EAST ECONOMIC DIGEST, September 29th, 2000 President Saddam Hussain is once again in the international limelight, raising fears of military action against Kuwait and demonstrating his ability to disrupt international oil markets. Iraq's latest moves are believed to be partly tied to the US presidential election schedule, which climaxes in early November. Saddam warned fellow OPEC members on 17 September not to bow to pressure from Western powers to lower oil prices. One week earlier, OPEC had decided to raise output by 800,000 barrels a day (b/d) to bring soaring prices under control. The president's warning helped push oil prices the following day to a 10-year peak. Market analysts said that with little extra output capacity within OPEC, Iraq's exports, which have averaged about 2.3 million b/d in recent weeks, could allow Baghdad a key role in markets. The Iraqi president likes to keep his country's case on the international agenda - maintaining pressure on the UN to relax or end sanctions imposed after his invasion of Kuwait in August 1990. Speculation is that Saddam Hussain may encourage higher oil prices to put economic pressure on the US and other Western countries opposed to the lifting of sanctions. Before Saddam's warning to OPEC, Oil Minister Amer Mohammed Rasheed had accused Kuwait of sabotage by drilling for oil in a border zone and depleting Iraqi reserves. "Suitable measures" would be taken, he warned. The official press later said Iraq's complaint did not constitute a threat to Kuwait, but the statement on 16 September brought assurances from the US that it stood by Kuwaiti sovereignty and helped push up oil prices. On 18 September, Kuwait said it would welcome surveys by impartial experts of oil fields on the border to disprove the allegation that it was stealing Iraqi oil, using horizontal or angled drilling techniques. Kuwaiti officials said Iraq's accusations were aimed at preventing plans to develop oil fields close to the joint border with the help of major oil companies. There is also speculation that Baghdad is trying to apply pressure ahead of a late-September meeting in Geneva to discuss a claim by Kuwait Petroleum Corporation for damage caused by the 1990/91 Iraqi occupation. The UN compensation commission proposed in June that the company be awarded $15,900 million. Baghdad has also written to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan complaining about damage inflicted on the Iraqi-Saudi pipeline because of the suspension of oil exports since August 1990. The letter, presented on 19 September, also refers to the Saudi appropriation of what Baghdad says was 11 million barrels of crude stored at the Al-Moajjez terminal. Russia has recently started a new campaign to convince the UN to lift sanctions - claiming that the Russian economy has lost $30,000 million in Iraqi business since 1990. In the third week of September, a Russian plane carrying 11 oil executives and five tonnes of aid flew to Baghdad on a high-profile mission. Another such mission was planned for later in the month, Iraqi officials said. A senior Russian official said in Moscow on 19 September that the mission had not broken UN sanctions. UN officials say Moscow had notified the UN sanctions committee of a relief flight, without mentioning the presence of any oil officials. Iraq's supporters are counting on a change of policy under a new US administration after the November presidential election. The Clinton administration maintains its tough stance. On 14 September, it told Congress it plans to give the opposition Iraqi National Congress (INC) the first half of an $8 million grant - representing a big increase in the level of financial support for Saddam Hussain's opponents. The INC will spend the money on broadcasting, humanitarian relief and other non-military programmes, officials said after a meeting in New York between Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and the INC. Only factors beyond its control may affect oil supply By BridgeNews Caracas--Sept. 2--Iraq's supply of oil to world markets would only be disrupted by matters "beyond our control," not by political reasons, Iraq VicePresident Taha Yassin Ramadan said Thursday. * * * The slow pace of approval by the United Nations of contracts for spareparts to repair an upgrade Iraq's oil infrastructure could impact future oil production and supply, he said, although he could not say when that could occur or how much supply may be in jeopardy. In a press conference following the heads of state summit here, Ramadan would not commit Baghdad to participating in the next round of the United Nations' oil-for-food program, which allows Iraq to sell unlimited amounts of oil to purchase humanitarian supplies and pay costs associated with the 1990 Gulf war. The current, eighth
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 128
IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 128 Friday September 28, 2000 LATEST++ Jordan to become third nation in week to send passenger flight to Iraq AMMAN, Jordan (AP) _ Jordan said it would send a plane carrying humanitarian aid to Baghdad on Wednesday, becoming the third nation in a week flying passengers to Iraq in an escalating challenge to U.N. sanctions. The United States stepped up its protest against the unauthorized flights, which it maintains violate the sweeping U.N. embargo on Baghdad that followed Iraq's August 1990 invasion of Kuwait. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright told the U.S. Senate on Tuesday she was ``very concerned'' about unapproved Russian and French flights to Iraq in recent days. She was trying to persuade Jordan not to follow suit, and said the United States could invoke a law that cuts off assistance to countries that violate the U.N. embargo on Iraq. Jordan plans to fly to Iraq on Wednesday whether or not it gets clearance from the U.N. sanctions committee, a Jordanian government spokesman said Tuesday. France and Russia sent planes to Iraq in the last few days without waiting for clearance, maintaining that authorization is not required for humanitarian or passenger flights. ``Whether there is a response or not, the plane will leave tomorrow,'' Jordanian Culture Minister Mahmoud Kayed told The Associated Press. ``We did our duty, informing the U.N. on the flight.'' But Jordan can ill afford to anger the United States, which gives the impoverished nation dlrs 270 million a year in economic and military assistance. Jordanian government officials were tightlipped about the flight early Wednesday. Staff at Amman's Queen Alia International Airport would not even confirm that an aircraft was being prepared for a 75-minute flight to Baghdad. However, the Information Ministry invited reporters to go to the airport for what it described as an ``event'' at 2:00 p.m. (1100 GMT) _ expected to be the plane's departure. The sanctions committee gave its members until 1400 GMT Wednesday to raise any objections to the flight. If the flight enters Iraq before that deadline, it could be seen as having done so without U.N. approval. By late Tuesday, the United States had not made an objection. The developments heightened a growing call by Iraq's supporters for lifting the U.N. sanctions. Russia's state-controlled airline Aeroflot said Tuesday it was negotiating with Iraq on resuming regular passenger flights to Baghdad. In Syria, Foreign Minister Farouk al-Sharaa called for lifting the sanctions after talks in Damascus, the Syrian capital, with visiting Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz. Critics of the U.N. embargo say it deprives the Iraqi people of desperately needed medical help, food and other basic items. The Jordanian government said its plane will carry government officials, doctors and medical supplies, in a step it hopes will lead to a resumption of passenger flights to its neighbor. The U.N. sanctions committee procedures regarding flights are in deep dispute. France and Russia say nations wishing to send humanitarian goods into Iraq need only notify the committee of the intended flight, not receive its approval. The United States and Britain _ backed by the Dutch committee chairman _ say committee members must signal their approval by not raising an objection to the proposed flight within 24 hours. That 24-hour period would have ended Tuesday evening, but the committee extended it to the new Wednesday deadline while consultations continued. France's refusal to give the committee time to consider its flight last week prompted the United States to accuse France of violating the sanctions. On Monday, the United States asked that the committee send letters of inquiry to the countries involved to determine what violations had occurred, a U.S. official said. Two other proposed flights are being considered by the committee: one from Iceland and another from Russia to take off in the next few days. On Tuesday night, the United States and Britain put ``holds'' on those flights pending more information, said a spokesman from the Netherlands, which chairs the sanctions committee. POLITICS: 10-YEAR EMBARGO ON IRAQ THREATENS TO UNRAVEL UNITED NATIONS, Sep. 26 (IPS) -- The 10-year-old U.N. embargo on Iraq, which has devastated that country's economy and caused the deaths of hundreds of children, is threatening to unravel. France and Russia, two veto-wielding permanent members of the Security Council, have challenged the embargo, arguing that it does not apply to civilian flights carrying humanitarian aid. Both Russian and French planes have, over the weekend, flown to Iraq carrying not only doctors and medical supplies but also business executives and athletes. But the United States and Britain, also permanent members of the Council, insist that these flights are a violation of the embargo which was imposed on Iraq just after it i
[student-campaign] New Project for Students nation-wide
ATTENTION!!! JOIN STUDENTS NATION-WIDE TO END THE SANCTIONS ON IRAQ As students who stand opposed to the US/UN sponsored sanctions on Iraq, which have claimed hundreds of thousands of innocent lives, we are currently organizing a nation-wide student project called the "National Spring Break Against the Sanctions." It seems that a good opportunity may present itself to send a STUDENT DELEGATION to Iraq during the Spring of 2001 through a number of organizations, among them Voices in the Wilderness. "National Spring Break Against the Sanctions" will provide some reachable, short-term goals for your campus activism against the sanctions this year, culminating in the participation of one or more students in an all-student public-witness delegation during the spring break of your academic year. Keep in mind that participation in the project and delegation will require some serious preparation work throughout the year. We have sent this information out to student groups in colleges and universities across the nation. If you are interested in participating in the spring-break delegation, if your student group is interested in sponsoring one or more student volunteers from your university for the delegation, or if you are interested in supporting the project in any other ways, please contact us ASAP. Once we have an estimate of the size and number of delegations, the project can begin taking shape. Below is a sketch of the project idea so far. Please keep in mind that this project is in the making, so any suggestions and ideas are very welcome! National Spring Break Against the Sanctions 1) Educational events, speakers,etc The first phase of the project would involve basic educational activities to introduce the issue of the sanctions to your campuses and communities throughout first semester. Building greater awareness early on about the effect of sanctions on the Iraqi people will be important for the later phases of the project, which require fund-raising. See the end of this message for websites with educational information and resources aswell as speaker lists. 2) Selection of delegates Once we have an idea of the number of possible participants in the Spring Break delegation, the dates and sizes of the delegations can be decided upon. We hope to represent as many regions and institutions as possible in the delegations, so the number of possible delegates from the same school may be limited. Also, we realize that spring break falls on different dates for different colleges and universities, so dates are indefinite as of now. 4) Advertisement of Project and Fund-raising Once the delegations have been decided on, student groups would then start spreading the word about the upcoming trip. It will be up to student groups to fundraise for the trips, which will cost approximately $1,800-2,200 per person (including airfare). Perhaps student groups from universities that are not sending a delegate could work to help sponsor the project and students from the region that will be going. After all, the purpose of an all-student delegation is to represent the concerned student population of the nation. 5) Spring Break trip For descriptions of and stories from past Voices in the Wilderness delegations, please see their website. The student participants will of course help shape the itinerary of the trip. We're hoping to somehow bring video cameras along with the delegations to film the students experiences. The footage could then be edited and turned into a great educational tool during the follow-up education. 6)Follow-Up Education This is the crux of the entire project, the reason for any such act of public-witness. The student participants and supporting student groups will formulate these plans. We were envisioning that students from colleges and universities in the same region could spend the following months educating in different communities around their region. Any student who commits to a spring break delegation must commit as well to a certain amount (to be determined later by the group as a whole) of educational work. We figured that educating in small groups rather thansolo would be fun and more affective. Creative ideas are welcome! Before you decide to join this project, PLEASE read about the health and safety as well as financial risks involved in breaking the embargo and traveling to Iraq. All of that very important information can be found at http://www.nonviolence.org/vitw/documents1a.html. Read carefully! We want to have an estimate of the number of delegates and delegations by the end of October. If you are interested in becoming involved in this project in any way, please contact us AS SOON AS POOSSIBLE via e-mail or phone: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (812) 335-8920 (ask for Kathryn) We hope to hear from you soon! T
