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/** mideast.gulf: 29.6 **/
** Written  9:39 pm  Jan 20, 1993 by pnmideast in cdp:mideast.gulf **
From: <pnmideast>
Subject: IPS/IRAQ/JANUARY 1993

/* Written 12:09 am  Jan 17, 1993 by newsdesk@igc.apc.org in igc:ips.englibrary */
/* ---------- "IRAQ: U.N. air raid support is 'int" ---------- */
Copyright Inter Press Service 1993, all rights reserved.  Permission to re-
print within 7 days of original date only with permission from 'newsdesk'.

Title: IRAQ: U.N. air raid support is 'intolerable', say NGOs

geneva, jan 14 (ips/victor ego ducrot) -- international non-
government organisation's (ngos) have criticised united nations
approval of the ''aggression of western powers against iraq'' as
''intolerable''.

the air raid on wednesday has also been described by the pacifist
ngos as united states president ''george bush's last crazy hostile
act''.

the statements, released in geneva, were made by the women for
peace organisation (wpo), the north-south institute (n-si) and the
international pro-palestinian association (ipa), all active in
islamic issues.

the three ngo's will lead a protest on jan. 17 against the air
raid on iraq which will take place in front of the u.n.
headquarters in geneva.

the protest rally will be attended by the ex-president of
algeria, ben bella; the former leader of the portuguese revolution
of 1974, otelo de carvalho; and tunisian fauzy mella, professor at
the geneva development institute.

on thursday representatives of the palestinian liberation
organisation (plo) in geneva issued a press release condemning
''the western aggression carried out in the name of the u.n.''.

the union of arab lawyers (ual) and the american lawyers
association (ala) also criticised the joint french, british and
north american operation against iraq.

the ala representative in geneva, argentinean jurist alejandro
teitelbaum, called it alarming that a group of countries ''use
weapons to force compliance with u.n. resolutions, while the
mission of this world organisation is to keep the peace''.

''it cannot be imagined that these countries would carry out a
similar military operation against morocco, a country that
violates u.n. resolutions on the situation in the sahara and has
paralysed the u.n.'s mission in this area,'' he added.

he said that countries like israel and south africa have always
violated u.n. resolutions, and neither the security council, the
u.s. or the european powers ever felt the need for military
intervention.

the ual declared in a press release, that the true aim of the
u.s. and its allies is to protect their strategic interests in the
persian gulf, under cover of the u.n.

there were no official reactions in diplomatic circles in
geneva and an unamed diplomat said that the attack on iraq ''took
nobody by surprise, because we expected it to happen that very
day''.(more/ips)

iraq: u.n. air raid support is 'intolerable', say ngos(2-e)

according to a statement from the u.s. embassy, ''the military
operation was directed at president saddam hussein's anti-aircraft
missiles''.

the u.s. ordered wednesday's attack, because, during the
previous two weeks, iraq sent aircraft south into an area
designated as a no-fly zone by u.n. resolutions, and installed
anti-aircraft missiles.

in addition, iraqi forces entered kuwait on four occasions and
baghdad refused u.n. observers access to iraqi territory.

mohamad al sahaf, the iraqi foreign minister, told the
jordanian daily ''ad-dustur'' that the actions ordered by saddam
hussein are not in violation of the u.n. resolutions or the terms
of the truce signed two years ago.

the iraqi ambassador to the u.n. in new york, nizar hamdoom, on
wednesday stated on television that ''the u.n. representatives in
iraq tell our government one thing, and the offices in new york
something completely different''.

un officials in geneva reported that hamdoom had sent a letter to
the president of the security council, yoshi hatano, on tuesday,
in which he asked that a diplomatic solution to the disagreement
between washington and baghdad be sought.

according to julian hottinger, political scientist at the
lausanne university, the military decision taken by u.s. president
george bush, six days before leaving office, is ''extremely
dangerous'' because it aggravates the existing tension in the
muslim world.

hottinger believes that these tensions will increase if another
military attack on iraq takes place. the regional situation has
already been put under pressure by the israeli decision to deport
over 400 palestinians and the situation of muslims in the former
yugoslavia and in the ex-soviet republics.

analysts on swiss french speaking television commented that
bill clinton will take power in the u.s. at a time of worldwide
instability.

clinton, who supports bush's decision, will have to face the
problem of the civil war in bosnia-hercegovina, the instability in
the balkans as well as the situation in somalia.
(end/ips/ip/ved/mf/trd/mv/93).

** End of text from cdp:mideast.gulf **