Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

Operations
Deployments
US Policy
United Nations
Reconstruction Issues
Foreign Reactions
News Reports

Current Operations

• Regime Sabotage Attempts Continue Near Fallujah AFPS 20 Jun 2003 -- Operation Desert Scorpion continues, with U.S. troops conducting nine raids throughout Iraq. U.S. 1st Armored Division soldiers conducted five raids in the greater Baghdad area June 20 and detained five Iraqis, according to a U.S. Central Command release.
• IRAQ / SECURITY VOA 20 Jun 2003 -- Increasing attacks against U-S forces in Iraq, and against Iraqis cooperating with the coalition, continue to make security the top concern for the U-S provisional authority. Those attacks, along with rampant crime, are also affecting United Nations operations, delivery of electrical power and the lives of ordinary Iraqis.
• DESERT SCORPION OPERATIONS SUMMARY (June 20, 2003) CENTCOM 20 Jun 2003 -- Nine raids yielded five detainees as Coalition Forces continued to isolate and defeat non-compliant forces throughout Iraq, while delivering humanitarian aid as part of Operation Desert Scorpion.
• Attacks on US Forces Also Affecting UN Operations in Iraq VOA News 20 Jun 2003 -- Increasing attacks against U.S. forces in Iraq, and against Iraqis cooperating with the coalition, continue to make security the top concern for the U.S. provisional authority. Those attacks, along with rampant crime, are also affecting United Nations operations, delivery of electrical power and the lives of ordinary Iraqis.

Deployments

US Policy

• "Operation Iraqi Prosperity," by L. Paul Bremer III Washington File 20 Jun 2003 -- "Much has been written since the war about the political liberation of Iraq, one of the remarkable events in the history of human freedom. Never before in warfare have so many been freed with so few casualties, in so short a period of time, with so little damage done to the country and its people. The removal of Saddam Hussein also offers Iraqis hope for a better economic future. For a free Iraq to thrive, its economy must be transformed."
• EDITORIAL: THE MASS GRAVES OF IRAQ VOA 20 Jun 2003 -- Since the U.S.-led coalition liberated Iraq from the dictator Saddam Hussein, the bodies of thousands have been found in dozens of mass graves around the country. A mansion that used to belong to one of Saddam Hussein's security guards has become a makeshift grieving place for Iraqis whose loved ones went missing during the ousted dictator's years of terror. The Committee for Free Prisoners helps relatives find out what happened to the hundreds of thousands who were murdered by Saddam's execution squads.
• EDITORIAL: JUSTICE FOR MASSACRED IRAQIS VOA 20 Jun 2003 -- Now that Iraq has been liberated, the world is learning more about the horrors of Saddam Hussein's dictatorship. Mass graves containing thousands of bodies are being uncovered throughout the country.

United Nations

• UN set to launch appeal for additional $259 million in relief aid to Iraq UN News Centre 20 Jun 2003 -- The United Nations will launch a new humanitarian appeal for Iraq next week calling for an additional $259 million on top of a $2.2 billion dollar flash request it opened in March to cover relief operations until the end of the year.

Reconstruction Issues

• Ex-Im Bank Begins Supporting Exports to Iraq Washington File 20 Jun 2003 -- The Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) has announced it is ready to process applications for transactions supported by a letter of credit from buyers or banks located in third countries.
• Security Will Set Stage for Iraqi Economic Growth, Bremer Says AFPS 20 Jun 2003 -- Coalition forces have made great strides in providing security in Iraq and rooting out the remnants of Saddam Hussein's regime, but for any change to stick, Iraq must change its economic underpinnings, said L. Paul Bremer III.
• IRAQ: Military and support staff bitter at redundancies IRIN 20 Jun 2003 -- On the wall of Lt Riyad Abd al-Rahman's shabby Baghdad flat is a faded photograph showing him standing proudly next to his colleagues - all senior commanders under Saddam Husayn. But those days came to an end two weeks ago when the Coalition told him he was fired. All the marching he does now is with demonstrators in front of the Republican Palace, headquarters of the Coalition forces, to ask for his job back.

Foreign Reactions

• REFUGEES: BRITAIN / IRAQIS VOA 20 Jun 2003 -- Britain has announced that starting this month it will offer a benefits package to Iraqis living in the country who volunteer to return home. And the prime minister's office has warned that Iraqi asylum-seekers could be forced to return home starting at the end of the year. But refugee advocates are concerned about the push to send Iraqis home, warning conditions in Iraq are still too unstable to ensure their safety.

News Reports

• Report: Analysts Believe Saddam is Alive, Hiding in Iraq VOA News 20 Jun 2003 -- A U.S. newspaper report says intelligence analysts now believe Saddam Hussein survived the war against his regime and is being sheltered by supporters somewhere in Iraq.