WASHINGTON, 3 March — The Bush administration is funding a convention of exiled Iraqi army officers as part of the build-up to a widely anticipated military operation against Saddam Hussein. It is expected that both the Secretary of State, Colin Powell, and the Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, will address the conference.
US military planners are keen to obtain as much information as possible from the exiled officers about Saddam’s capabilities. By hosting the convention, the US also wishes to send a message to the Iraqi dictator that it is serious about getting rid of him.
“We are conveying our seriousness about the new Iraq,” a State Department source said yesterday. “It shows that we have the support of more than one group.”
The convention of up to 200 senior officers from various branches of the Iraqi military — due to take place in Washington later this spring — has been organized by the Iraqi National Congress, the umbrella of opposition groups committed to the overthrow of Saddam.
INC spokesman Sharif Ali said: “We have received a very enthusiastic response from officers inside and outside Iraq. This will be the largest conference of officers in opposition to Saddam’s dictatorship ever held.
“It will have several aims — to mobilize Iraqi officers and unite them with the democratic Iraqi opposition to develop a plan of action to confront Saddam’s regime.”
There is intense speculation that Washington is preparing to launch a military operation later this year. Last week the British Secretary of Defense Geoff Hoon said Britain would be prepared to support a US attack on Iraq in the “right conditions”, although no decision had been made.
The INC is one of several opposition groups with which the Bush administration is dealing as it puts together a plan for a possible military operation against Saddam. As well as the use of bombing strikes and the insertion of US troops, the plan would probably enlist Kurdish fighters in northern Iraq.
The US hopes many officers initially loyal to Saddam would defect once the military assault began. (The Independent)
