Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

DATE= 4/4/03

TYPE=BACKGROUND REPORT

TITLE= PENTAGON: FADING FEAR

NUMBER=5-53623

BYLINE= ALEX BELIDA

DATELINE= PENTAGON

CONTENT=

INTRO: Pentagon officials have said repeatedly -- U-S led forces do not intend to permanently occupy Iraq. But they concede many Iraqis appear reluctant to embrace Operation Iraqi Freedom out of fear the coalition will not stay long enough. V-O-A Correspondent Alex Belida reports from the Pentagon.

TEXT: With Baghdad isolated and Saddam Hussein portrayed as no longer in control, Pentagon officials say more and more Iraqis are beginning to breathe sighs of relief.

This is how Chief Pentagon spokeswoman Victoria Clarke puts it:

///CLARKE ACTUALITY///

The fear and the terror is starting to evaporate in Iraq. Many of them feel free enough to cheer the arrival of the coalition forces.

///END ACTUALITY///

At a Pentagon news briefing (Friday), Ms. Clarke went on to note a story in the New York Times which said Iraqis were rushing out to greet coalition troops.

She quoted the story as saying people were crying out repeatedly, 'Thank you.' But, as she notes, the article says the crowd also had questions.

///CLARKE ACTUALITY///

Two questions dominated the crowd: "Will you stay?" and "Can you tell me what time Saddam is finished?"

///END ACTUALITY///

A senior Pentagon official says these twin concerns may be responsible for the fact that thus far there have been few such scenes of exuberant Iraqis welcoming U-S led soldiers.

On the one hand, the official notes, Saddam has demonstrated an extraordinary capability to survive throughout his years in power. At the same time, the United States has demonstrated a track record on interventions abroad that for Iraqis, the official says, may not be convincing.

The official points to Lebanon, Somalia and Haiti but says, perhaps most importantly for Iraqis, U-S led forces "abandoned the Shiites" after the 1991 Gulf War -- a war in which U-S troops also did not press on to Baghdad after driving Iraqi soldiers out of Kuwait.

With the current coalition still not in absolute control of much of the country, even Pentagon spokeswoman Clarke concedes Iraqis may face continued suffering at the hands of Saddam's loyalists.

///CLARKE ACTUALITY///

It's quite possible that what's left of the Iraqi regime will continue or even escalate their horrible tactics of using civilians as hostages and shields for their own protection.

///END ACTUALITY///

Ms. Clarke says the regime is fooling nobody and its end is inevitable.

But the senior official says for Iraqis "this is a life or death matter," and it may explain why many Iraqis are reluctant to come forward and embrace Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Still, the Pentagon says more are now beginning to offer assistance to the coalition, including intelligence information on where Saddam loyalist forces may be located. Some Iraqis may even be receiving weapons to use against those forces.

Major General Stanley McChrystal of the Pentagon's Joint discusses the cooperation.

///MCCHRYSTAL ACTUALITY///

I'm not sure whether we've armed any elements outside of the Kurdish area. We are working with elements in many of the areas -- Shi'a elements in southern cities to try to help them identify and help us identify some of the irregular forces that have been operating there. So clearly, we are working with populations to try to give them the ability to remove the regime figures in the area.

///END ACTUALITY///

Perhaps the most notable example of cooperation has come in the city of Nasariyah, where an Iraqi lawyer identified only as Mohammad provided information that led to the successful rescue of an injured and possibly tortured American prisoner of war, Army Private First Class Jessica Lynch.

Mohammad and his family have since been evacuated to a secure location and promised refugee status in the United States.

But he summed up the concern of many Iraqis when he told a military reporter, quoting now, "Iraq is not a safe place while Saddam Hussein is in power." (Signed)

NEB/BEL/kbk