Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

 
  
IRAQI NEWS
·         Armed clashes reported between US forces, gunmen in Mosul
·         Iraqi official says "alternative plan" being sought for petrol stations
·         Iraqi premier says at least 2,000 schools to be rebuilt, teachers to be trained
·         Mortar shells fall in Green Zone
·         United Iraqi Alliance platform
·         Oil Ministry says fuel shortages due to corruption
IRAQI PRESS QUOTES & COMMENTS, 15 JAN. 05
·         Terrorists cannot be combated through security measures alone - Al-Sharq al-Awsat
·         ``We have no other choice but to believe Iraqi politicians''- Al-Zaman
·         ``Daily tribulations are closely linked to terror attacks''- Al-Nahdhah
IRAQI MEDIA PRESS HEADLINES, 15 JAN 05
·         Al-Nahdhah [Baghdad, political daily newspaper] Headlines
·         Al-Mada [Baghdad, political daily newspaper published by Al-Mada Corporation for Media, Culture and Art
IRAQI MEDIA PROGRAMME SUMMARIES, 15 JAN. 05
·         Al-Sharqiyah TV Headlines News, 15 Jan 05
·         Programme summary of Iraqi Al-Diyar TV, in Arabic 15 Jan 05
KURD NEWS & KURDISH MEDIA SUMMARIES, 15 JAN 05:
·         'Forty-four' insurgents detained in Kirkuk
·         Iraqi Kurdish TV reports meeting of leaders in Kurdish parliament to discuss Baghdad talks
·         Kurdistan Satellite TV news Headlines 15 Jan

IRAQI NEWS

Armed clashes reported between US forces, gunmen in Mosul

Armed clashes erupted on 15 January morning between US forces and unidentified gunmen in the Al-Wihdah and Al-Mithaq areas in Mosul, Iraqi Al-Diyar TV reported. No information on casualties had been received, it said. (Al-Diyar TV, Baghdad, in Arabic 15 Jan 05)

Iraqi official says "alternative plan" being sought for petrol stations

The Iraqi Oil Ministry's general inspector said that the ministry is searching for alternatives to the plan under which the National Guards and Iraqi police forces were assigned the mission of protecting petrol stations in Iraqi cities, Iraqi Al-Diyar TV reported. This follows their "failure" to control the situation in petrol stations and the exacerbation of the crisis, which forced some car owners to sleep two or more nights outside petrol stations to obtain 30 litres of gasoline, the channel said. Moreover, oil products are sold at "unbelievably high prices" on the black market with the approach of Id al-Adha holidays and the elections a few days later, Al-Diyar TV said. (Al-Diyar TV, Baghdad, in Arabic 15 Jan 05)

Iraqi premier says at least 2,000 schools to be rebuilt, teachers to be trained

Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi stressed the importance of enhancing education in Iraq during a visit to a school in the Salah al-Din Governorate, north of Baghdad, Iraqi Al-Sharqiyah TV reported. Allawi said there was a plan to reorganize and reconstruct at least 2,000 schools, the channel said. The Iraqi government was also working on changing school curricula and training teachers, Allawi added. (Al-Sharqiyah TV, Baghdad, in Arabic 15 Jan 05)

Mortar shells fall in Green Zone

Three mortar shells fell between the Conference Centre and Al-Rashid Hotel inside the Green Zone in central Baghdad on 15th. Details of damage or casualties were not available. (Al-Sharqiyah, Baghdad, in Arabic 15 Jan 05)

An explosion near a police station at the entrance to the Green Zone left a column of smoke over the area, Al-Arabiya reported.
United Iraqi Alliance platform

National Assembly Member Humam Baqir Hammudi, from the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraqi (SCIRI), has said the United Iraqi Alliance does not want a sectarian state, but "a state of constitution and laws, a state for all Iraqis whether Sunnis, Kurds, Arabs, Turkomen or Christians". "We do not want a state on a religious basis but a state that respects Islam and respects the Iraqi people," he added in a lengthy interview with the Iraqi paper Al-Adalah. Hammudi set out the Alliance's political programme and urged all political forces to participate in the polls. (Al-Adalah, Baghdad, in Arabic 13 Jan 05)

Oil Ministry says fuel shortages due to corruption

The Iraqi newspaper Al-Furat reported on 11th that the reason for the current fuel crisis hitting Iraq is the absence of inspections and monitoring of petrol stations due to large-scale financial and administrative corruption. It said half of the fuel transported by tankers to petrol stations is sold on the black market, another quarter to relatives and acquaintances and the rest to people at the stations. The sources explained that the owner of a gas station makes 500,000 Iraqi dinars profit upon selling a fuel tanker of gas at his gas station compared to seven million dinars on the black market. State-owned vehicles carrying small containers or cans also compete with the smugglers in selling fuel on the black market. (Al-Furat, Baghdad, in Arabic 11 Jan 05)

IRAQI PRESS QUOTES & COMMENTS, 15 JAN. 05
Terrorists cannot be combated through security measures alone - Al-Sharq al-Awsat

Al-Sharq al-Awsat [Baghdad edition of London-based daily Al-Sharq al-Awsat, Saudi-owned] From commentary by Abd al-Rahman al-Rashid]: "Unlike Mafia gangs, terrorists cannot be combated through security measures alone. They live on selling ideas and manage to get funds and recruits in return. This is where a committed media institution comes in. What we need is a media principled enough and convinced enough in what it stands for to command respect, particularly on the part of the security apparatus, which should then deal with it in a more cordial manner, away from the customary threats of intimidation and imprisonment, as it will see it as a staunch ally (in the fight against terrorism)."

``We have no other choice but to believe Iraqi politicians''- Al-Zaman

Al-Zaman [daily, independent, Baghdad edition of London-based Al-Zaman] [From commentary by Fatih Abd-al-Salam]: "There are Iraqi politicians who would wave a threatening club at anyone that dares to say the country is snowballing downhill so fast that it is getting very hard to imagine how its horrible descent can ever be stopped. They keep saying the forthcoming elections are bound to put things right, and we have no other choice but to believe them. Yet, as we keep our fingers crossed and dream of better days to come, we cannot help focusing our staring eyes at the sad reality of daily life in Iraqi cities living through the squalor of the 18th century cities, at best."

``Daily tribulations are closely linked to terror attacks''- Al-Nahdhah

Al-Nahdah [Baghdad, daily political newspaper,by Adnan al-Pachachi][From commentary by Abd al-Mun'im al- A'sam]: "Politics has invaded every Iraqi home, without exception. Virtually, no Iraqi family is insulated from the daily bother of struggling to live with all too persistent power outages and fuel shortages. Furthermore, no Iraqi family is blind to the fact that these daily tribulations are closely linked to terror attacks, smuggling, profiteering and ubiquitous mismanagement. Yet, many of those alienated by the political process, especially among the educated elite, would argue, and not unwisely for that matter, that it is no use complaining about such things when you know all your complaints will fall on deaf ears. They have chosen to resort to silence because they have come to realize that the government is acting fairly after all: You can continue to complain as you like, and the government can continue to do what it likes."

IRAQI MEDIA PRESS HEADLINES, 15 JAN 05

Al-Nahdhah [Baghdad, political daily newspaper] Headlines
§         High election commission will not accept withdrawal of applications
§         Five civilians killed in crash involving bus, US tank
§         Assassination of Al-Sistani representative decried by Association of Muslim Scholars
§         Seventeen killed, wounded in Khan Sa'ad car bombing
§         Kurdistan Democratic Party's office in Mosul comes under attack
§         Minister without portfolio resigns after being held by US forces
§         High election commission: Holders of Israeli papers not eligible for voting
Al-Mada [Baghdad, political daily newspaper published by Al-Mada Corporation for Media, Culture and Art
§         Curfew imposed in Tikrit until election day
§         Conference on dialogue, national unity put off CIA: Iraq turned into terror breeding ground; Powell expects escalation in violence after elections
§         First reaction by [subsidiary of Egypt's Orascom] IRAQNA: Al-Mada mobile phone lines cut off; Readers voice solidarity with paper in its call for taking company to court Following fuel crisis, bread prices double
§         Isam al-Rawi tells Al-Mada Association of Muslim Scholars' stance concerning elections not final]



IRAQI MEDIA PROGRAMME SUMMARIES, 15 Jan. 05
Al-Sharqiyah TV Headlines News, 15 Jan 05
§         Announcement of a security plan for the coming elections in Iraq includes a ban on cars near poll centres
§         US soldier killed, three others injured in northern Mosul
§         Iraq's president talks to US president, promises 100 per cent free and fair election... Attacks launched on Baghdad's Green Zone
§         Prime minister says the government is working to develop education
§         US says one Marine killed in Al-Anbar 14 January
§         Defence minister says Syria-based woman with Iranian links tried to assassinate him
§         Fifteen members of National Guard kidnapped near Hit; prisoners escape during transportation
§         US troops in Babil cause damage to Iraqi antiquities
§         Poland to withdraw a number of troops from Iraq
§         US court condemns soldier for abuses at Abu-Ghurayb
§         Egypt's Al-Azhar mufti says attacks in Iraq not jihad
§         US official says violence may prevent many Iraqis voting
§         Four Iraqis working as contractors for foreign organizations found dead near Al-Kut. Several civilians injured in clashes near Al-Kut
§         At least one Kuwaiti injured in clashes south of Kuwait City
§         Attack on oil pipeline near Bayji, northern Iraq
§         Iraqi oil minister quoted on levels of oil production
§         Iraqi finance minister quoted on Iraqi trade deposits.

Programme summary of Iraqi Al-Diyar TV, in Arabic 15 Jan 05
§         Video report: The Iraqi government is today expected to announce the details of its security plan within preparations for the elections
§         Announcer-read report: The Iraqi government says it will start paying urgent financial assistance to Al-Fallujah families today
§         The electoral committee spokesman denies that Jews of Iraqi origin holding Israeli documents will participate in the election
§         Announcer-read report: Dr Isam al-Rawi, member of the Association of Muslim Scholars, says the AMS position towards the election is not final
§         In Friday sermon, Al-Sistani's representative in Karbala, calls on all groups to participate in the election
§         Announcer-read report: The Association of Muslim Scholars condemns the assassination of Muhammad al-Mada'ini, representative of religious leader Al-Sistani
§         Announcer-read report: The International Immigration Organization says Iraqi expatriates can start registering for vote in 900 centres in 14 countries as of Monday
§         Announcer-read report: Iraqi officer tells Reuters that armed men kidnapped 15 National Guardsmen Friday in Western Iraq.
§         Announcer-read report: Iraqi and multinational forces are searching for 28 prisoners who escaped from Abu Ghurayb prison on Thursday.
§         Announcer-read report: Military court condemns US soldier Charles Garner for abuse in Abu Ghurayb prison
§         Video interview: Judge Radi al-Radi, chairman of the Integrity Commission, explains that the commission's resources for fighting corruption are small but expresses optimism that things will improve
§         Announcer-read report: The independent commission investigating corruption in the food-for-oil programme finds that millions of dollars are missing
§         Announcer-read report: The Oil Ministry's general inspector says alternatives are being sought to the plan under which the Iraqi police and National Guards were assigned to provide protection to and organize entry of vehicles to petrol stations


KURD NEWS & KURDISH MEDIA SUMMARIES, 15 Jan 05:
'Forty-four' insurgents detained in Kirkuk
An Iraqi National Guard spokesman in Kirkuk has said 44 "terrorists" have been arrested in a series of raids. The Iraqi Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) newspaper Kurdistani Nuwe said 23 were arrested in the Bajwan area, three near Kirkuk Governorate buildings and another eight in the Laylan Administrative Sub-District on the night of 12 to 13 January. It did not account for the other 10. (Kurdistani Nuwe, Al-Sulaymaniyah, in Sorani Kurdish 14 Jan 05)

Iraqi Kurdish TV reports meeting of leaders in Kurdish parliament to discuss Baghdad talks

Iraqi Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) satellite TV reported that the Kurdistan National Assembly hosted Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) leader Mas'ud Barzani, Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader Jalal Talabani as well as the head of the KDP-led Kurdistan regional government Nechirvan Barzani and Kurdistan parties' leaders and senior members on 15 January. The meeting, it said, focused on the Iraqi general elections, particularly the elections of the Kirkuk Governorate Council and the outcome of Jalal Talabani and Nechirvan Barzani's talks with the Iraqi president, the prime minister and the speaker of the Iraqi National Assembly. The meeting "unanimously agreed", the channel added, that if the Iraqi government were to implement the demands of the Kurdistan region delegation which visited Baghdad, then they (Kurds) would take part in the elections of the Kirkuk Governorate Council. Otherwise, the Kurdistan parliament would take the "necessary decisions". Iraqi Vice-President Rozh Nuri Shawes was shown saying: "If the Iraqi government goes back on its promises and the assurances are not implemented or the points agreed upon are not implemented, the Kurdistan National Assembly has the right to review the stance of the people of Kurdistan, as a whole, towards the interim government and the Iraqi state in general. Thereafter, the appropriate decisions can be taken to the effect." (Kurdistan Satellite TV, Salah-al-Din, in Sorani Kurdish 1630 gmt 15 Jan 05)

Kurdistan Satellite TV news Headlines 15 Jan
§         US forces spokesperson said two US soldiers killed in Anbar and one in Mosul;
§         Iraqi police source said seven Iraqis killed and eight policemen injured in explosion in Baghdad
§         People of Makhmur Administrative District expected to stage a demonstration to demand the annexation of the town to Kurdistan region
§         Kurdish people interviewed on their reaction to failure by Iraqi government to implement Article 58 of Iraqi Administration Law on normalization of conditions of Kirkuk
§         Meeting held in Mosul on voter education campaigns
§         Report on Kurdish pilgrims in Saudi Arabia.