In this issue:

Now Rumsfeld Threatens Syria and Iran

Arab League Combines With Others at UN To Call for Halt to War

U.S. Fears Turkish 'War Within a War'

Basra Faces 'Humanitarian Disaster'

Syria and Iraq Say U.S. Practicing 'Law of the Jungle'

State Department Picks 'Frontmen' for Iraqi Proconsul

EIR Middle East Expert on Iranian National TV and Radio

Labor Party and Histadrut To Oppose Israeli 'Killer Budget'

Palestinian 'Killing Fields' Ignored as Iraq War Starts

From Volume 2, Issue Number 13 of Electronic Intelligence Weekly, Published Mar. 31, 2003
Mideast News Digest

Now Rumsfeld Threatens Syria and Iran

Demonstrating why Democratic Presidential pre-candidate Lyndon H. LaRouche, Jr. has warned that the current war against Iraq—unless stopped—is a "perpetual war" that will destroy civilization, on March 28 Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld threatened Syria and Iran at a Pentagon briefing. Rumsfeld charged that military supplies are known to be crossing the border from Syria to Iraq, including night-vision goggles. He said these shipments pose a direct threat to coalition forces, and added that: "We consider such trafficking as hostile acts and will hold the Syrian government accountable."

He next went after Iran, saying that armed members of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, sponsored by Iran, are known to be entering Iraq from Iran, and that such forces will have to be treated as combatants by the United States. "We will hold the Iranian government responsible for their actions," he said. Previously, Pentagon civilian warhawks had cited SCIRI among the anti-Saddam groups that would join with the U.S. in overthrowing the regime in Baghdad.

Arab League Combines With Others at UN To Call for Halt to War

On March 24, the Arab League issued a nearly unanimous resolution that called for immediate withdrawal of the U.S. and British forces from Iraq, and condemned the "aggression" against Iraq. Arab League Secretary General Amr Musa of Egypt also said the League will be calling for "an emergency session of the UN Security Council to consider demanding an end to the war." Arab League member Syria is a rotating member of the UN Security Council.

At the March 26 UN Security Council open debate on Iraq, many Arab League members called for an immediate cessation to the U.S.-U.K. war against Iraq, according to UN press releases, and some called for Syria to introduce a resolution to this effect. Among the Middle East participants in the open debate were:

*Iraq's Mohammed Aldouri, who said the U.S. and Britain had launched an aggressive war, which constituted a blatant material breach of international law and the UN Charter; also, it was a material breach of Security Council resolutions that called for respect for Iraq's sovereignty. He called on the Council to stop the aggression, and to demand the withdrawal of U.S. and British forces from Iraq. He chided the Council because, instead of considering the aggression itself, it had been busy discussing the humanitarian aspects of the problem. Wasn't that putting the cart in front of the horse?

*League of Arab States observer Yahya Mahmassani said that the resolution adopted at the end of the League's Council meeting on March 23, had stated that the aggression against Iraq was a violation of the UN Charter and the principles of international law. In addition to the demands cited above, the League had called for a reaffirmation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Iraq. The waging of war against Iraq was not based on the issue of weapons of mass destruction, he said, but on the imposition of absolute power. Instead of one occupation (Palestinian), there were now two to deal with.

*Algeria's Abdallah Baali said the use of force against Iraq did not meet the criteria of international legitimacy. His country endorsed the resolution adopted by the Arab League. He called for strict respect for independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Iraq. The United Nations, he insisted, must call for an immediate cessation of the conflict.

*Egypt's Ahmed Aboul Gheit said the Council must call for the immediate cessation of fighting in Iraq, as well as initiate political action to achieve a peaceful settlement. In addition, the Council must insist that the sovereignty of Iraq be maintained, and urge all parties to respect the principles of international law.

*Yemen's Abdullah Alsaidi said that the military invasion was in no way justified, that it constituted a flagrant violation of international law and the Charter. The policy of regime change was an act of aggression against a Member of the UN. The international consensus against the war, must be crystallized into a UN policy.

On the following day, March 27, the Security Council members themselves had an opportunity to speak after nearly 70 non-members had addressed the Council during the previous two days. Rather than discussing—as had the non-members—the need for immediate cessation of the invasion, the Security Council focussed on a resolution to extend the Iraqi oil-for-food program. But still, key Arab League members tried to focus the debate upon stopping the war, including:

*Syria's Fayssal Mekdad urged the Security Council to make every effort to end the destructive war that was waged in flagrant violation of international law. Unilateral action by the U.S. would lead, he warned, to grave consequences—divisions and chaos in international relations. The U.S. aggression would be recorded as a "black page in history."

*Saudi Arabia's Fawzi bin Abdul Majeed Shobokshi warned that the Arab and Islamic region was facing a war that had grave repercussions on the international system and on international relations. Reason dictated that military action against Iraq be brought to an immediate halt, that foreign forces be withdrawn, and that diplomatic efforts be resumed.

*Jordan's Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein, citing the Arab League Resolution, said Jordan was part of an effort to end the hostilities as quickly as possible.

U.S. Fears Turkish 'War Within a War'

On March 23, reports appeared in the sensationalist World Tribune.com, as well as other wire services, that thousands of Turkish troops were "pouring into Iraq." Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul was quoted as allegedly having said: "As an independent state Turkey does whatever it pleases. ... We don't want to be misunderstood and therefore we are discussing this issue with our ally" (the United States). However, on March 22, the Turkish government denied sending 1,500 troops into the Kurdish area of Northern Iraq.

On March 26, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported that the European Commission had offered Turkey significant funding to stay out of Iraq. The European Union offered to double financial assistance in the years 2004-06, from 500 million euros (U.S. $532 million) to 1 billion euros. At the same time, EU Enlargement Commissioner Guenter Verheugen issued a strong warning to Ankara: "[We want to] make it very clear that any crossing of Turkish troops into northern Iraq is undesirable and will have to be taken [into] account in the final assessment of whether Turkey is ready to accede [to the EU]."

Despite this bribe and warning, Turkey's Chief of Staff Gen. Hilmi Ozak said on March 26 that Turkey would "coordinate" with the U.S. before sending troops into northern Iraq, taking some of the edge off the statement by Foreign Minister Gul. Gen. Ozkok said that, "because our strategic ally, the United States, is still in war in the region, our action will be in coordination with the U.S." But the General added that "instability arising from an attack against our forces, a massive refugee flow ... an attack by one of the regional forces against another, or against civilians, is our most important security concern. If there is increased threat or danger and if ... our forces already there would not be able to prevent it, I think the Turkish Armed Forces could decide to send in additional troops."

Basra Faces 'Humanitarian Disaster'

On March 24, according to a UN transcript of his briefing, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan citing reports from the International Red Cross said that Basra faces a "humanitarian disaster ... in that they have no water and they have no electricity." (The shutoff of electricity destroys the ability to make water potable, which had been said to be a major cause of some 1.5 million civilian deaths in 1991—far beyond the actual Persian Gulf War damage—because of the outbreak of cholera and diphtheria, particularly among those under 5.) According to Annan, the main water treatment plant which supplies the city has not been working since March 21, when the electricity was cut. "A city of that size cannot afford to go without electricity or water for long," Annan said, adding that: "Apart from the water aspect, you can imagine what it does for sanitation." Daytime temperatures can reach 104 degrees F at this time of year.

State Department spokesman Richard Boucher rejected any assertion that there was any "humanitarian crisis in Iraq at this time." In the case of Basra, he countered that the Red Cross says it has been able to get 40% of the water supply back up and running already. The Iraqis had made it very difficult to get humanitarian aid in by mining the ports, he complained; Boucher later had to admit under questioning, that mining a harbor against an invading power is a legitimate act of self-defense!

Syria and Iraq Say U.S. Practicing 'Law of the Jungle'

On March 27, according to a UN press release, Syrian and Iraqi officials, speaking at a UN Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, said that the U.S. is following "the law of the jungle" in the attack of the stronger upon the weaker. A debate then erupted between Syria and Iraq on one side, and the U.S.-U.K. on the other, at a conference that was supposed to deal exclusively with methods of disarming countries that purportedly possessed weapons of mass destruction.

The representative from Syria intervened, charging that the war against Iraq had nothing to do with international law, but was "the law of the jungle," where thousands of innocent Iraqis were being killed. It was an aggressive war that was unjust, said Suleiman Sarra. Supposedly the war was for disarmament; yet, Israel had a stockpile of unacceptable weapons, and little was being done to report on, inspect, or eliminate those weapons. He urged the Security Council to find a peaceful solution to the crisis.

Iraq's representative, Nawfal al-Basri, said the UN should intervene to put an end to this illegitimate aggression, which flagrantly violated its Charter. The U.S. actions enshrined both the "law of the jungle," he charged, and scorn for international legitimacy. This war was being waged not only against Iraq, he asserted, but against the Arab world as a whole.

State Department Picks 'Frontmen' for Iraqi Proconsul

On March 16, according to The Washington Times, the U.S. State Department named more than 30 Iraqi exiles, who are mostly living in U.S., to make up the professional core of a new Iraqi government. Describing themselves as the "frontmen" of the new government, many of these are already working with the U.S. Treasury, Defense, and State Departments. They are said to have been picked for their professional skills; members of the Iraqi National Congress are not prominent in the group.

EIR Middle East Expert on Iranian National TV and Radio

Muriel Mirak-Weissbach, a member of the Editorial Board of EIR, was broadcast on March 27 on Iranian Channel 1. The questions asked her in a 30-minute interview, included the following: If the UN did not approve the war, do you consider it legal or illegal? If it is illegal, how do the U.S. and U.K. think they can build institutions in postwar Iraq? How do you evaluate the demonstrations against the war in the U.S. and Europe? Who is responsible inside the U.S. for the war? How can expansion of the war be prevented? Is there any role for the UN in this, if the UN failed to prevent war? How do you evaluate U.S. and U.K. claims that they want to introduce democracy into Iraq? What about the oil factor?

The answers drew on recent statements by Lyndon LaRouche, particularly his remarks during and following the recent Bad Schwalbach international conference of the Schiller Institute.

Labor Party and Histadrut To Oppose Israeli 'Killer Budget'

On March 26, the Israeli Cabinet approved what the newspaper Ha'aretz described as a "killer austerity budget," that may prove to be the Achilles heel of the Sharon government (see ECONOMICS DIGEST). The Histadrut trade-union federation, which has historic ties with the Labor Party, has already announced it will take job actions, and even threatened to organize a general strike. Already hundreds have demonstrated in front of Sharon's office, protesting the proposed cuts to welfare.

According to Ha'aretz of March 24, the Histadrut had declared a nationwide dispute against this budget hatched by the new Finance Minister, the brutal Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu, which would slash public sector jobs and pay.

Shlomo Shani, chairman of the Histadrut's unions department, said, "Decisions cancelling collective wage agreements between Histadrut and public-sector employees that were signed decades ago and have been renewed periodically will not pass quietly. These agreements regulate the employment conditions of hundreds of thousands of employees. The government is abusing its power in order to rescind on its own commitments and intervene in labor relations."

And, on March 28, Labor Party chairman Amram Mitzna said: "The economic terrorism of the Likud government will strike more victims than any other terrorism."

The Labor Party will set up a joint staff for opposition parties and social organizations to spearhead and coordinate a fight against the plan. It will be headed by Labor Party Secretary General Ophir Pines-Paz and the group will launch a series of protest actions, including demonstrations in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, court petitions, a filibuster in the Knesset (the Israeli Parliament), protests outside the ministers' homes, and the forming of a human chain around the Prime Minister's office.

Also opposing this murderous budget is Meretz, one of whose Knesset members, Haim Oron, said: "We can delay the plan's approval until the eve of next year."

Palestinian 'Killing Fields' Ignored as Iraq War Starts

Focussed on Iraq, the world has been ignoring the mounting toll of, now, 2,200 Palestinians killed by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) since September 2000, including 429 young children and 114 women. The killings are become so routine and automatic, that even when the IDF carried out a "targetted killing" of two of its own Israeli security guards, in an open field in the West Bank on March 14, hardly any complaint was heard inside Israel. On March 16, the Israeli newspaper Ha'aretz finally wrote, "The IDF, from an army of values, is becoming a terminator."

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