Inspectors back in Iraq as allies strike air defences
Their arrival in Baghdad after a four-year absence came as allied warplanes bombed Iraqi defence systems in the northern no-fly zone after being fired upon during routine patrols, the US military said. Iraq considers such patrols a violation of its sovereignty and frequently shoots at them.
At the White House, spokesman Scott McClellan said Monday the Iraqi anti-aircraft fire "appears to be a violation" of the UN resolution that sent the inspectors back to Iraq, but declined to say if Washington would seek Security Council action as allowed under the guidelines.
Separately, the US Central Command said US planes dropped 120,000 leaflets Sunday near the town of Ar Rumaythah, in southern Iraq, urging the military to stop firing on US and British planes patrolling the southern no-fly zone. It was the fourth leaflet drop in the last eight weeks in southern Iraq.
This time, the UN inspectors will have more sophisticated equipment than their predecessors did and a broader right to search anywhere, anytime even in presidential palaces and mosques.
US President George W Bush has warned Iraqi President Saddam Hussein that failure to cooperate with the inspectors will bring on an American attack.
In the past, weapons inspectors had to give advance notice of visits to sensitive sites including eight vast presidential palace complexes, losing the effect of surprise inspections.
The new Security Council resolution states that inspectors have "the right to inspect any sites and buildings, including immediate, unimpeded, unconditional, and unrestricted access to presidential sites equal to that at all other sites."
Chief UN inspector Hans Blix made clear before arriving in Baghdad that mosques also are not off-limits.
Mr Blix told reporters that credible inspections are "in the interest of Iraq and the interest of the world."
Saddam's deputy, Izzat Ibrahim, was quoted by the official Iraqi News Agency as saying that Iraq was dealing with the UN resolution to protect its people from "American arrogance," but also was prepared to fight "if war is imposed on us."
At a chaotic airport news conference, the inspectors faced Iraqi and other Arab reporters demanding to know whether they expected friction with the United States and whether they would accept intelligence information from Washington.
The inspectors said they did not expect trouble from the United States and welcomed information from all over the world.
Mr Blix arrived in Baghdad aboard a UN cargo plane with Mohamed El-Baradei, who oversees the International Atomic Energy Agency.
They were met by an Iraqi delegation led by General Hosam Amin, head of the national monitoring directorate, set up as a counterpart to the inspection team.
Mr Blix and El-Baradei met with Amin and Iraqi presidential adviser Amer Saadi in their first official meeting, which involved about a dozen people from each side.
They did not speak to reporters on entering the Iraqi Foreign Ministry.
The UN team planned to reopen the Baghdad offices that inspectors abandoned in 1998, set up secure phone lines and arrange transportation ahead of the first inspections, which Blix has said would begin as early as November 27.
Iraq must file a declaration of its banned weapons programs by December 8 or provide convincing evidence that they have been eliminated. Full-scale inspections are to resume after that, with Mr Blix reporting his findings to the UN Security Council within 60 days.
"I urge president Saddam Hussein to comply fully for the sake of his people, for the sake of the region and for the sake of the world order," UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said yesterday, while travelling in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
