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17 November 1998

• White House Briefing November 17, 1998 -- I think it's impossible to try to predict in advance if Saddam Hussein decides he's not going to cooperate how that will manifest itself. But I think given what we know about how UNSCOM works, that is not a situation I think that we'll see within the next couple of days.
• State Department Briefing -- 17 November 1998 -- IRAQ Reported Iraqi Army Offensive in southern Iraq Resumption of UNSCOM Inspections/Pace and Specifics of Inspections Role and Purpose of UNSCOM / Iraqi Full Compliance and Comprehensive Review
• DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE FOR SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL 17 November 1998 -- A flight on a United Nations Special Commission on Iraq (UNSCOM) carrier had taken 86 personnel into Baghdad today, Mr. Eckhard said. Those personnel would be reopening their offices and they should begin monitoring declared sites tomorrow.
• UNITED NATIONS REPORT USIA 17 November 1998 -- The Special Commission overseeing the destruction of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction (UNSCOM) has reopened offices in Iraq and will resume monitoring operations November 18, the UN announced November 17.
• A realigned Mideast jolted Iraq's game plan Scott Peterson and Ilene R. Prusher Christian Science Monitor, November 17, 1998 -- A crucial element seems to have been the US push on the Israeli-Palestinian peace process at Wye River, Md., last month. Washington was widely seen to have strong-armed Israel into signing the deal, and that effort has reduced anti-American sentiment. It may have also paved the way for official statements critical of Iraq, without risking a violent popular backlash.
• IRAQ / U-N RETURNS Voice of America 17 November 1998 -- GOVERNMENTS IN THE REGION ARE NOT OPTIMISTIC THAT THE IRAQI GOVERNMENT WILL NOW FULLY COMPLY WITH U-N DEMANDS.
• WHAT NEXT FOR IRAQ? Voice of America 17 November 1998 -- ONCE AGAIN, IRAQ'S SADDAM HUSSEIN HAS STARTED A CRISIS, THEN ENDED IT. THE WEST'S PATIENCE WEARS THIN, BUT WHAT IS THE NEXT STEP?
• IRAQ / KUWAITI PRISONERS Voice of America 17 November 1998 -- KUWAIT IS URGING THE UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL TO PRESS BAGHDAD TO ACCOUNT FOR MISSING KUWAITI NATIONALS CAPTURED BY IRAQ DURING ITS OCCUPATION OF KUWAIT.
• From the Brink to the Blink: Washington's Iraq Weekend By TIM WEINER and PHILIP SHENON The New York Times (17 November 1998) Only 15 minutes before 300 cruise missiles were to rain down on Baghdad, Clinton called off what would have been the deadliest military attack of his presidency. The attack was set to begin at 9 a.m, ET, on Saturday. Berger felt the attack should be delayed to study the Iraqi offer. Cohen thought the attack should go forward. Albright would also want the attack to proceed. Gen. Henry Shelton, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that the military had been ready to carry out president's orders.
• Report on McCain's Remarks About Tip-Off Angers Paris By CRAIG R. WHITNEY The New York Times (17 November 1998) Foreign Minister Hubert Védrine reacted angrily Monday to remarks by Senator John McCain that Védrine interpreted as a charge that France had tipped off Iraq that American bombers were on their way.
• U.S. Forces Set to Strike Iraq in Hours if Called On By STEVEN LEE MYERS The New York Times (17 November 1998) Of the 139 additional aircraft that Clinton sent to the region on Wednesday, only 23 completed the trip, including four B-1 bombers and seven B-52's. Another 53 planes, including three squadrons of fighter jets, went as far bases in Spain, Italy and Germany before the attack was called off. The rest never left the United States. None of the aircraft being sent to the Gulf were involved in the strike that was aborted on Saturday morning -- not even the B-52's. They left air bases in Louisiana and England on Friday night and were flying at the time toward Diego Garcia.
• Allies See Iraq Bombing as Inevitable By BARBARA CROSSETTE and STEVEN ERLANGER The New York Times (17 November 1998) The United States, its allies and past defenders of Iraq said they did not expect President Saddam Hussein to cooperate with U.N. weapons inspectors, and that if he broke his promise it would set off a military response without a Security Council debate.
• U.N. Workers Taking Up Crucial Relief Efforts By DOUGLAS JEHL The New York Times (17 November 1998) United Nations workers began to head back to Iraq on Monday. An urgent first order of business is to untie logjams at border crossings that threatened to disrupt internationally monitored food deliveries.
• MCC delegation to Iraq sees first-hand sanctions' devastating impact -- Strict economic sanctions imposed on Iraq in 1990 prior to the Persian Gulf War have created widespread suffering in this once prominent Middle Eastern country. A seven-member Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) delegation saw this first-hand during a visit to Iraq.