Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

DATE=11/05/00

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

NUMBER=2-268847

TITLE= IRAQ FLIGHTS (L)

BYLINE= SCOTT BOBB

DATELINE= CAIRO

CONTENT=

VOICED AT=

INTRO: In Iraq, the national air carrier, Iraqi Airways, has flown two commercial flights within the country for the first time since the Gulf War. Correspondent Scott Bobb reports from our Middle East Bureau in Cairo that the planes flew without incident through two no-fly zones in northern and southern parts of the country that are off limits to Iraqi military flights.

TEXT: The flights left around mid-day from the recently re-opened Saddam International Airport outside Baghdad. One flight flew to Mosul, 450-kilometers north of the Iraqi capital, and the other flew to Basra, 600-kilometers to the south. The Iraqi government says the flights will operate on a daily basis.

The government announced several days ago it intended to resume domestic commercial air service 10-years after it was suspended because of the Gulf War. Iraqi officials have indicated the purpose is to challenge the no-fly zones, which were imposed following the war to protect dissident populations in northern and southern Iraq.

U-S and British planes patrol the zones and frequently clash with Iraqi air defenses. Iraq says the zones are illegal and a violation of its sovereignty.

U-S and British officials last week said their governments did not oppose commercial Iraqi flights in the zones, only flights by the Iraqi military. But a U-S spokesman at the United Nations urged the Iraqi government for safety reasons to notify the United Nations about schedules and routes.

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The resumption of the Iraqi domestic air flights is part of a wider government program aimed at weakening international sanctions against Iraq.

Dozens of commercial flights have landed in Baghdad in the past two-months to show solidarity with the Iraqi people and opposition to a ban on commercial air travel. A number of countries, including Russia, France, and China, say the ban does not forbid humanitarian flights. The U-S and British governments say such flights must be authorized by the United Nations.

Iraq and Russia have announced they intend to resume commercial air links when the sanctions are lifted and Iraq is reportedly negotiating similar arrangements with other governments in the region. (SIGNED)

NEB/SB/RAE