NEWS 7-13/8/00

(I am taking over from Colin Rowat as interim news report provider. To the despair of those who want to keep these reports as an archive I am giving items in more or less chronological order, in contradiction to Colin's practice of giving them in reverse chronological order Peter Brooke)

*  Protesters Deride U.N. Sanctions
*  Pakistan seeks exploration project in Iraq
*  Iran releasing 728 Iraqi POWs
*  Saddam lectures Iraqis on virtue
*  Irish party, Fine Gael, urge dropping sanctions against Iraq
*  Kuwait launches diplomatic offensive after Saddam's threats
*  Iran frees 357 Iraqi POWs
*  Iraq, N. Korea may be building Scud missile plant
*  Chavez ends Iraq visit, Saddam slams U.S.
*  Iraq-Syria train service resumes after 19 years
*  UN names Dutch and Dane as Iraq oil overseers
*  Wahid visit to Iraq will harm Indonesia's stature, Albright warns
*  Kuwait occupation head appeals death verdict
*  Leader of new Iraqi opposition group claims backing of some military chiefs
*  UN approves limited Iraq oil price period
*  Western air raid kills civilian, wounds 20 in Iraq
*  The President of Indonesia Seeks to End Iraq Sanctions


NEWS, 14-20/8/00

*  U.S. bombs Iraq for 2nd day
*  Saddam seeks Russian missile deal
*  Iraqi child blinded by cancer flies to US for treatment
*  Iraq food deal 'must improve'
*  U.S. disputes Iraqi claims over damage in bombing
*  Iraq reopens Baghdad airport
*  Iraq to exit OPEC Sec-Gen race if Caracas steps in
*  Iran informs UN on 75 instances of cease-fire violation by Iraq
*  Iranian armed opposition says Tehran forces shell one of its Iraq camps
*  Iraq and Sudan sign economic cooperation agreement
*  Turkey acknowledges Iraqi air raid, probes casualty claims
*  UN rights body calls for lifting Iraq embargo
*  Russian delegation discusses oil cooperation with Iraq
*  US sanction-busters hope to raise awareness for Iraqi children at home


NEWS 20-27/8/00

NOTE: The news this week comes in two parts. The first is the news proper and the second is a Supplement (News supp 2027/8/00) with things that don't quite fit but which seem to me to be of interest. These include two editorials on the bombing campaign The Times (for) and The Guardian (against).

IN THIS NEWS:
*  Iraqi goods to get show despite UN sanctions (Daily Star, Lebanon)
*  Humanitarian mine-clearing center to open in Iraq (Itar-Tass)
*  Iraq to buy 4m kg tea from India (Times of India)
*  Iraqi health minister in Belgrade, in talks with Yugoslav counterpart
(Iraqi broadcast)
*  More than 10,000 Iraqis dead in July from embargo: Baghdad
*  Russian Oil Co. Chief Visits Iraq
*  Turkoman party claims armed attack by Kurdish KDP on sports club (BBC
Monitoring)
*  UN building up arms inspection team for Iraq
*  Defiant Iraq awaits new UN inspection team (Times of India)
*  Dispute Arises on Iraqi Debt for Oil Losses by Kuwaitis (NY Times)
*  Iraq Says It Won't Permit U.N. Visit
*  US money to oust Saddam 'wasted' (Guardian)
*  Saddam building missiles (Guardian)
*  Iranian armed opposition claims attacks on govt forces (Times of
India)
*  Iraqi spokesman gives details of US-UK 26th August air sorties
(Baghdad radio)
*  Iraqi foreign minister heads to Morocco
*  Iraqi parliament speaker off to UN meeting in New York

IN THE SUPPLEMENT:
*  [British] arms build-up 'breached anti-nuclear treaty' (The Observer)
*  Stop the bombing: we must find a better way to deal with Iraq
(Guardian leader)
*  Watch over Iraq: Thankless and dangerous, but in no sense pointless
(Times leader)
*  Bombing of Iraq 'a threat to peace' (Letters to The Times)
*  Afghans welcome arms embargo, not economic sanctions: UN (Times of
India)
*  Labour ditches ethical arms trade bill (Guardian)
*  Perfecting the art of evasion: Russians aren't the only ones who have been telling lies (Guardian)
*  Is Iraq planning to nuke U.S.? (Christian Broadcasting Network)
*  What is the UN doing about Iraq? (Chicago Tribune editorial)
*  The collapse of the Iraqi war machine: Ten years after the Gulf War, what was once the world's fourth largest army remains incapable of protecting its own territory. (The Ottawa Citizen)


NEWS 28/8-3/9/00

*  Iraq policy doesn't stand up to inspection (Chicago Tribune)
*  Far-right Freedom Party strikes up with embargoed Iraq
*  Americans Experience Life in Iraq
*  Jordan sentences sanctions-busting pilot (BBC World Service)
*  Egyptian exports to Iraq to triple compared with 1999
*  Jordan: committee on lifting Iraq embargo hands letter to PM, cancels sit-in (Radio Jordan, Amman)
*  Israel Monitoring Iraqi Missile
*  U.N. Arms Inspectors Back Down (Washington Post)
*  US, British aircraft unscathed in Iraq raids: US military
*  Iraqi Kurds in clash with Islamist gunmen near Iran border (Kurdistan
Satellite TV)
*  Religion in the News [Iranian pilgrims to Iraq]
*  U.S. Confirms Bombing of Iraqi Targets
*  Jordanian firms prefer Iraq over Israel: Official (Times of India)
*  Gulf council denounces Iraqi 'threat' to Kuwait (Times of India)
*  Gulf states to study call to end curbs on Iraq (Times of India)
*  10 yrs of curbs tell on Iraq, scraps free education (Times of India)
*  Curbs mean genocide, Iraqi speaker tells UN (Times of India


NEWS 3-10/9/00

Again this is divided into two parts, with items I think are interesting but not quite news sent separately as a supplement PB

*  Saddam Hussein ill with cancer
*  Iraqi lawyers want verdict on Italian pilot overturned (Times of
India)
*  Iraqi activities in Egypt
*  Jordanian ministers in Baghdad to boost trade
*  MKO reportedly to help Iraq regain control in Kurdistan (Voice of the
Islamic Republic of Iran)
*  Iraq denies scrapping free education (Times of India)
*  Arab League to abolish sanctions on Libya (Times of India)
*  French plane to land in Iraq
*  Annan Hindered U.N. Program [Butler]
*  Ex-UN arms chief in Iraq slams former colleague [Butler again]
*  Jordan wants to resume civil flights to Baghdad (CNN)
*  Water crisis in Iraq
*  Chinese, Iraqi Vice Premiers Discuss Bilateral Relations
*  Najib Mahfouz: the embargo against Iraq is futile
*  Iraq urges oil lifters to pay Gulf port charge (Business recorder)
*  OPEC a window on the world for sanctions-hit Iraq
*  Iraq Reportedly Gives Contracts to Nations That Want to End Sanctions
*  Some 1.35 million Iraqi children died due to the sanctions
*  Rafidah to lead (Malaysian) trade mission to Jordan and Iraq
*  Iraq: Shi'i opposition says regime "deteriorating", Saddam, son both ill
*  Iraqi Communist Party statement details anti-aircraft positions

IN THE SUPPLEMENT:

*  Panel will call for $3.2 billion in biological defense
*  State Dept. Accuses Iraq, Afghans [on religious toleration]
*  Pentagon says attack on Kurds would prompt U.S. military response
(CNN)
*  Unrest Expected Amid Rumors of Saddam's Ill Health (Stratfor.com)
*  Opec has world running on empty (The Star, Malaysia)


NEWS 10-17/9/00

*  UN asked to sue Western suppliers of chemical weapons to Iraq
*  Iraqi diplomat lauds Iran's detente policy
*  French non- governmental organizations fight to rent a plane to head for Iraq
*  Kurdish official says Iraq amassing troops near Kurdish region
*  The Turkish water projects on the Tigris and Euphrates
*  Kuwait to discuss Iraq war fines with France
*  Change of heart by Iraq would end sanctions (remarks by P.Hain)
*  Iraqi paper terms Opec decision as US conspiracy
*  Albright Bashes Iraq in U.N. Speech
*  Report: Iraq Civilians Get More Food
*  Iraqi paper condemns Saudi arms purchase from U.S.
*  Iraq says it discovered mass graves on the border
*  Russia in new push to lift Iraq sanctions
*  ICRC team expected in Tehran to clarify the status of PoWs
*  Iraq allows establishing private insurance companies
*  Iraqi Kurdish faction to withdraw militias
*  Unlikely Foe Of Iraq Policy Tells Why [interview with Ritter]
*  Child Malnutrition Plagues Iraq
*  Kuwait says Iraq wants war, calls for Arab stand
*  Iraq to boycott Jordanian firms doing business with Israel
*   U.S.: Iraq Violates Saudi Air Space
*  Iraq, Russia To Resume Flights
*  Reports of Iraqi Missile Threat Are Greatly Exaggerated [by Scott
Ritter]
*  Iraq considers EURO instead of dollars in trade dealings
*  Kuwait oil minister says OPEC fed up with Iraq
*  Remarks by Archbishop Carey in New York
*  Iraq: vice-president and Congo envoy discuss ties, cooperation
*  Oil minister tells symposium USA planned to weaken OPEC with Saudi help
*  Iraqi Foes To Receive Aid
*  Shi'ite group opposes U.S. aid to Iraqi opposition
*  Iraqi prelate calls for end to sanctions: Archbishop Kassab visits
Cardinal Keeler
*  Iraq sanctions 'cruel, outdated,' says Vedrine
*  Egypt urges efforts to end UN sanctions on Iraq
*  Iraq Boosts Military Training
*  Pentagon trying to incriminate Iraq
*  US planes hit radar station in Iraq: Pentagon
*  Former Japanese defense chief meets Iraqi speaker

IN THE SUPPLEMENT

*  Souk in a Slump: A century-old institution, Baghdad's copper market fading away
*  Saddam urges nuclear scientists to support military in defeating enemies
*  Throwing our weight about Sierra Leone: A personal view by Seumas
Milne [Guardian. It refers to Iraq but raises the whole question of
Britain's colonial past]
*  Turkish dam 'will rob 70,000 of their homes'
*  US judge defers decision. Ruling on Surasaknow set for Oct 23 [Bangkok
Post a strange little story about 'conspiracy' to buy oil from Iraq]
*  Iraq after Saddam [nasty little piece of American fantasising]
*  Oil prices: between Iraq and a hard place [interesting article in
Irish Independent]
*  From a Rival With a Smile, Words to U.S. Are: En Garde [about Hubert
Védrine]


NEWS, 18-26/9/00
[This news was provided by Rania Masri of the Iraq Action centre]

SANCTIONS EFFECTS

*  Iraq: Embargo cost more than 10,000 lives in August. 24. Sept. AFP.

OIL FOR FOOD

*  UN fast tracks 1.792 billion dlrs worth of contracts for Iraq. Sept. 19. AFP.
*  Russia Moves to Lower Iraq Funds for Gulf War Victims. Sept. 21.
Reuters.
*  Kuwait claims more than 168 billion dollars in war damages from Iraq.
Sept. 23. AFP. {NOTE: All other reports cite the claim at $16 Billion not
$168 Billion)
*  U.N. Aide Says Equipment Delays May Curb Iraqi Oil Exports. 21 Sept. Washington Post.
*  Iraq to up oil output to 3.4 million barrels by early 2001: minister.
25 Sept. AFP.
*  Saddam sells UN drugs on black market. 24 Sept. The Telegraph (UK)

POSSIBLE OCTOBER SURPRISE

* i.e. massive US/UK military bombardment of Iraq
*  Report: Iraqi forces on full alert. 20 Sept. UPI
* Iraqi threats mere words, no need to reinforce in Gulf: US army. 20
Sept. AFP.
* Kurd faction wants U.S. to stop any N. Iraq attack. 24 Sept. Reuters.

VOICES AGAINST THE SANCTIONS

* Iraqi sanctions must end, says Campbell. (Campbell is the UK Liberal
Democrat foreign affairs spokesman.) 19 Sept. The Independent (UK)
* India for lifting of UN sanctions against Iraq. Sept. 24.
* India denounces US
* British raids on Iraq: Baghdad. Sept. 24. AFP.
* Russia exerts new pressure for early lifting of sanctions on Iraq. 20
Sept. AP.
* Syria calls for Removal of Iraq U.N. Sanctions. 26 Sept. Reuters.
* Oman calls for lifting of embargo against Iraq. 17 Sept. AFP.

FLIGHTS TO IRAQ

* Russia Won't Defy UN Iraq Sanction. 20 Sept. AP.
*  French flight to Iraq divides West. 22 Sept. BBC News.
*  Gulf papers urge resumption of air links with Iraq. 24 Sept.  AFP.
*  India considers organizes flight to Iraq.  26 Sept. AFP.
*  (UK) MP to defy sanctions with flight to Iraq. 26 Sept. The Telegraph
(UK)
*  Second French flight to test Iraq sanctions. 26 Sept. Reuters.
*  Jordan to send "humanitarian" plane to Iraq on Wednesday: minister. 26
Sept. AFP.
*  Arab trade union group hopes to organise flight into Iraq. 25 Sept.
AFP.

INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY RELATIONS AND IRAQ

*  Jordan's premier in Iraq: 1st visit of the kind in 10 years. 20 Sept.
ArabicNews
*  Iraq, Jordan discuss $250m oil pipeline project. 24 Sept. The Jordan Times.
*  Iraq and India to seek ways to reinforce trade ties. 23 Sept. AFP.
*  More than 47 countries to take part in Iraq's Babylon Festival. 20 Sept. AFP
*  (US) Officials Laud Saddam Efforts. 20 Sept. AP. & US Press Briefing on Iraq 19 Sept.
*  Cheney Blasts Clinton on Saddam.  20. Sept. AP.
*  Better Chance for Malaysian Iraqi Trade After Sanctions Lifted. Sept. 20. Asia Pulse.
*  Arab workers for lifting sanctions on Iraq. 24 Sept. Tishreen (Syria Times)
*  Beginning of Arab committee for lifting sanctions off Iraq today in Cairo. 23 Sept. Arabic News
*  Kuwait seizes ship with Iraqi oil in own waters. Sept. 23. Reuters.

WEAPONS INSPECTORS

*  U.N. Secretary General sees no sign Iraq will accept inspectors. Sept. 19. CNN
*  IAEA demands Iraq allow full nuclear inspections. Sept. 23. Times of India.
*  UK's Hain sees signs Iraq ready for dialogue. 25 Sept. Times of India.
*  Iraq reaffirms rejection of U.N. arms inspections. 25 Sept. Reuters.

US COURT AND SADDAM HUSSEIN

*  Iraq: Conference Examines Hussein's Alleged War Crimes. Sept. 19. Radio Free Europe (Official US Propaganda Piece)

IRAQI REFUGEES AT THE US/MEXICO BORDER

*  American authorities detain Iraqis at U.S.
*  Mexican border. 20 Sept. AP.
*  Drama at Mexico Border Spotlights Plight of Iraqis Seeking U.S. Asylum. 22 Sept. LA Times.

URLs ONLY

>From An Official US Propaganda Machine
http://www.rferl.org/nca/features/2000/09/F.RU.000920134103.html
*  Iraq: U.S. Sees Long-Term Threat As Long As Saddam Rules. 20 Sept.

Iraq and Saudi Arabia and Kuwait relations:
http://sg.dailynews.yahoo.com/headlines/world/afp/article.html?s=singapore/headlines/000926/world/afp/Kuwait__Saudi_Arabia_responsible_for_continuing_sa nctions__Saddam.html  
*  Kuwait, Saudi Arabia responsible for continuing sanctions: Saddam. 26.
Sept. AFP.

http://www.abcnews.go.com/wire/World/ap20000925_1454.html
*  Saddam warns Saudi, Kuwait not to push Iraq to the brink. 25 Sept. AP.


NEWS 1/10/00 to 7/10/00

There are two supplements this week. The first is the usual collection of pieces that seem interesting but aren't entirely news, or are only indirectly linked to Iraq. The second, also sent separately, is to do with the recent fighting between the Turkish Kurdish Workers Party and the Iraqi Patriotic Union of Kurdistan in northern Iraq.

Note that a more comprehensive weekly news bulletin is available at:
   http://www.egroups.com/group/iac-news-digests


NEWS (in this message):

*  Taliban says plane to Iraq denied permission to fly over Iran
*  US gives $4m to Iraqi rebels
*  More protest flights to Baghdad
*  Yemeni plane lands in Iraq
*  Egypt set to open cultural centre in Baghdad
*  Iraq seeks permission to use Iran's airspace for Russian planes
*  Syria seeks end to Iraq sanctions
*  Aeroflot to Resume Flights to Iraq
*  A civil airplane from Cairo to intentionally break the sanctions on
Iraq
*  Iraqi airlines to be opened very soon in Damascus
*  Opening an Iraqi opposition bureau in Terhan
*  Kuwait rushes police to Iraq border
*  Saddam offers to fight Israeli 'vagabonds'
*  UK Turkey 'pays compensation for Kurdish raid'
*  Moroccan flight lands in Baghdad in new test of air embargo
*  First Gulf state, Tunisia join flow of flights to Iraq
*  Tunisia, Turkey join solidarity flights to Iraq
*  In slap at U.S., Turkey allows aid into Iraq
*  Annan complains about high amount of 'holds' in Iraq aid program
*  Iraqi TV announces arrival of Algerian plane at Baghdad Airport
*  Kurdish PUK says PKK attacks continue despite cease-fire announcement
*  UAE 'will win major Iraqi reconstruction deals'
*  Authorities reportedly execute eight people for defacing Saddam murals
*  Arab states to hold summit on 21st
*  Lebanon to give Iraq medical aid

SUPPLEMENT (sent separately):

*  Iranian daily responds to Iraqi daily on two countries' eight-year-long war
*  Turkish drought worsens regional water row Iraq and Syria say new dams threaten supply
*  Editorial: Iraqi sanctions are a dead end (Seattle Times a very hard-hitting attack on American policy)
*  Despite U.S. opposition, Hussein in `great shape'  (Chicago Tribune)
*  A Nominee's Long Road to 'No' (on controversy surrounding US Iraqi policy with regard to the next US ambassador to Kuwait)
*  Iraqi smugglers net oil bonanza
*  Chavez a new revolutionary (account of the first foreign head of state to visit Iraq since the war)
*  Saddam sells medicines and aid for life's little luxuries (The Times)
*  Turkey Warns of Retaliation If U.S. Makes Genocide Charge (Washington
Post)
*  Cheney, Lieberman differ on dealing with US foes

KURDISH SUPPLEMENT (sent separately):

*  Kurdish clashes leave 22 dead in northern Iraq: faction
*  Barzani Arrives in Ankara
*  PUK attacks against PKK, part of a larger plan to eliminate PKK [general article on background]
*  PUK peshmergas kill five PKK militants in northern Iraq
*  Kurdish Pkk Rebels Say Ceasefire with Iraqi Kurds
*  Talabani And Barzani Are Invited to a Summit in London
*  PUK stops the war


NEWS, 8-15/10/00

I have not included any items directly on the current Israeli/Palestinian confrontation, despite its obvious relevance.  I have a couple of pieces related to the attack on the US gunship in Aden in the Supplement because the ship was policing sanctions (I am unpleasantly surprised to note that the Yemeni authorities would allow a US gunboat patrolling the Gulf to refuel in Aden). The hijack of the Saudi plane occurred just as I thought my labours were finished and I have included three items, the last finishing on an ungracious note from Mr Cook.

Otherwise the main thrust of the news has been continued long overdue
Arab solidarity flights to Iraq; Turkey joining in for what seems rather frivolous reasons; and Iraq converting from the dollar to the euro (a comment on this, downplaying its importance, is in the Supplement) PB

*  Syrian plane lands in Baghdad after 18 years
*  Saddam Chairs Meeting on Palestine Issue
*  Turkish Plane in Iraq on Humanitarian Mission
*  Iraq and Ukraine sign minutes of joint cooperation
*  Iraq donates 5 million euros to Palestinians
*  Iraq Willing to Do Business With Kuwaiti Companies
*  Iraqi oil will flow through Syrian territories
*  Iraq to attend Arab summit
*  Lebanon seeks Jordan-type oil deal with Iraq
*  Syria to send second plane to Iraq
*  Turkey To Operate Iraqi Pipeline
*  U.S. congress members support goals of Iranian resistance
*  Iraq says wants euro oil payments from Nov
*  Iraq wins opening Asian Cup match
*  Turkey work on Iraq pipeline must be UN-approved
*  Iran Foreign Minister visits Baghdad
*  [Egypt] signing a contract for exporting food products to Iraq of 100 million L.E
*  Four solidarity flights land in Iraq despite UN air embargo
*  Passengers Freed on Saudi Plane
*  Hijackers: Saudi Gov't Is Corrupt
*  Hijack victims prepare to leave Iraq


NEWS SUPPLEMENT, 8-15/10/00

*  Poll shows sanctions helped grease Milosevic's downfall [comparison between the apparent success of sanctions in achieving US war aims in
Serbia and the lack of success in Iraq]
*  Don't Fear Saddam [by Jim Hoagland, recommending tough action of some unspecified sort]
*  Saddam gets bolder as U.N. sanctions get weaker By Eli J. Lake [Is the sanctions regime unravelling?]
*  Six dead in apparent terror attack on U.S. Navy ship in Yemen [though the figure of six is out of date this gives quite a good account of the circumstances]
*  US closes African embassies
*  Petro-euro likely to remain a pipe-dream
*  Oil Experts Say Third 'Predictable' Personality [Guess who?] Could
Shape Presidential Election, Send Gas Prices Skyrocketing And Fuel
Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
*  Persian Gulf, U.S. Danger Zone [account of US deployment in the Gulf]