saddam: i'm complying with un resolution

From the ABC (Australia)

Saddam says he is complying with UN resolution

Iraqi President Saddam Hussein said in a rare interview broadcast on Tuesday that his country was complying with last year's UN resolution calling for disarmament, but the United States and Britain were seeking pretexts for war.

"Every fair-minded person knows that as far as resolution 1441 is concerned, the Iraqis have been fulfilling their obligations under the resolution," Saddam told British politician and veteran peace activist Tony Benn.

The interview, believed to be Saddam's first in 12 years, was recorded by Benn last weekend.

It will be aired on Britain's Channel Four television later tonight [Australian time], on the eve of a presentation by US Secretary of State Colin Powell to the United Nations.

Mr Powell is expected to provide evidence supporting Washington's view that Iraq is in breach of last November's resolution 1441, which calls for "serious consequences" if Iraq does not cooperate with weapons inspectors.


Empty chemical warhead

UN disarmament experts made a fresh find of an empty chemical warhead during an inspection of an ammunition depot north of the Iraqi capital, a UN spokesman said.

"An empty Sakr-18 chemical warhead was found at the Al-Taji Ammunition Depot, the warhead was tagged and secured," said spokesman Hiro Ueki.

"This is the same type of chemical warhead as at the Ukhaider ammunition storage area on January 16," Ueki said in reference to a dozen empty warheads found amid great fanfare at another suspect site last month.

In his first status report to the UN Security Council on January 27, disarmament chief Hans Blix said "the discovery of a few rockets does not resolve but rather points to, the issue of several thousands of chemical rockets that are unaccounted for."

Baghdad, which said the warheads discovered last month were not linked to any prohibited weapons programmes, later reported that it had found four more similar warheads at the Al-Taji facility.


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