Leger oppositie trekt Irak vanuit Iran binnen - VS niet blij met actie

[Gatara]

Dit is voorbij het "normale" nieuws gegaan (nos/rtl), dus kan zijn dat jullie het gemist hebben.

Leger oppositie trekt Irak vanuit Iran binnen

LONDEN - Een goed uitgerust leger van 5000 man is vanuit Iran Irak binnengetrokken om over het grensgebied te waken. Het Britse dagblad The Financial Times heeft dat op woensdag bericht. Het gaat om leden van de Iraakse oppositie, de Badr-brigade, die Iraanse steun genieten. Ze staan onder leiding van een ayatollah, Mohammad Baqir al-Hakim. Hij vluchtte in 1980 uit Irak naar Iran.

De krant citeert een anonieme Iraanse regeringsfunctionaris die beklemtoont dat het leger uitsluitend defensieve taken heeft. Zo zouden ze moeten voorkomen dat een anti-Iraanse strijdgroep in Irak in actie komt tijdens het strijdgewoel dat met en aanval op Irak losbarst.

Al-Hakims brigade was langs de zuidelijke grens tussen Irak en Irak gelegerd maar is volgens de bronnen van de Financial Times noordelijker de grens overgestoken, waarschijnlijk in december
http://www.sr.net/nieuws/buitenlands.html


Iran-based Shiite opposition to send more fighters to Iraq

Friday, February 21 , 2003 - © 2003IranMania.com

ARBIL, Iraq, Feb 20 (AFP) - The main Tehran-based Iraqi Shiite opposition group is holding talks with Iran on allowing more of its fighters to cross into Kurdish-held northern Iraq, the group's number two said Thursday.

Fighters from the Al-Badr Brigade, armed wing of the Supreme Assembly of the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SAIRI), are already deployed in the Kurdish region of northern Iraq, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim told a news conference.

"SAIRI is discussing with the Iranian government the possibility of allowing more to cross into Iraqi territory," Hakim said in this northern Iraqi town.

Hakim, brother of SAIRI leader Ayatollah Mohammad Baqer al-Hakim, denied fighters had "recently" crossed from Iran into northern Iraq, saying they had been there for some time, which was quite "normal" given that they were Iraqi.

Al-Badr Brigade is believed to comprise more than10 , 000fighters.

London's Financial Times (FT) reported Wednesday that up to5 , 000members of the Al-Badr Brigade had crossed into northern Iraq from Iran to secure the frontier in the event of a US-led war to topple President Saddam Hussein.

A government spokesman in Tehran as well as SAIRI's office there denied the FT report, which said the fighters had moved into a part of northern Iraq run by the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK).

Hakim gave no figures.

Arbil, held by the rival Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), is the venue of a planned meeting of Iraq's opposition, which has said it expects the session to go ahead within days after being repeatedly postponed since mid-January.

Hakim said he would not rule out "US pressures" on the meeting being organized in the Kurdish enclave, which is off-limits to Baghdad, in anticipation of a US-led invasion.

The KDP has attributed the latest delay to poor weather which prevented some delegates from reaching the area.

While Sairi issued a statement warning of proposals to "instal a foreign governor in Iraq", Hakim told reporters that current US plans for a post-Saddam Iraq were "dangerous."

He told AFP in an interview in Tehran on Sunday that the United States had informed the Iraqi opposition it planned to set up a transitional US military administration in Iraq.

This was revealed during talks he and other opposition representatives held in Turkey with the US envoy for the Iraqi opposition, Zalmay Khalilzad, on February 8 and 9, said Hakim.
http://www.iranmania.com/News/Articl...rent%20Affairs


US says Iranian presence in Iraq would be destabilizing

Thursday, February20 , 2003 - © 2003IranMania.com

WASHINGTON, Feb 19 (AFP) - The United States said Wednesday it would oppose and regard as "destabilizing" any Iranian presence in northern Iraq amid reports thousands of Iranian-backed Iraqi opposition forces had entered Iraqi Kurdistan.

State Department spokesman Richard Boucher declined to confirm the reports, which first appeared in London's Financial Times newspaper, but made clear Washington would be greatly concerned if they were true.

Richard Boucher:
"We would oppose any Iranian presence in northern Iraq. It would be a very serious and destabilizing development," he said.

"We think any Iranian presence or Iranian-supported presence in that region is destabilizing and not positive."

The daily reported that up to5 , 000soldiers under the nominal command of Ayatollah Mohammad Baqir al-Hakim, a Shiite Muslim opposition leader who has been based in Iran since1980 , had crossed into northern Iraq from Iran.

Quoting what it called senior Iranian officials, the British business daily said that the troops, part of Hakim's Badr brigade, with some heavy equipment, were in northern Iraq with the aim of securing the frontier in the event of war.

The Badr brigade has been trained and equipped by Iran's Revolutionary Guards and could be regarded as a proxy force of the Iranian government,

But a government spokesman in Tehran as well as the Shiite Iraqi opposition based in Iran swiftly denied the report.

A senior Iranian official, who asked not to be named, told the paper the presence of Hakim's troops along the border was defensive and aimed at countering a possible attack on Iran by the People's Mujahedeen, an Iranian armed opposition group based in Iraq.
http://www.iranmania.com/News/Articl...rent%20Affairs

[Quivarum]

Wat er nu gebeurd is niet meer dan logisch. Iran, maar ook Turkije, ruiken Saddams bloed en proberen een stukje Irak aan hun eigen grondgebied toe te voegen. Ik denk niet dat dit een goede zaak is voor de Irakezen en de stabiliteit in de regio na de oorlog.

[aldi - PUNK]

mee eens.

[Gatara]

Quivarum schreef:
Wat er nu gebeurd is niet meer dan logisch. Iran, maar ook Turkije, ruiken Saddams bloed en proberen een stukje Irak aan hun eigen grondgebied toe te voegen. Ik denk niet dat dit een goede zaak is voor de Irakezen en de stabiliteit in de regio na de oorlog.

Inderdaad. Koerden en Sji'ieten zien nu hun kans en popelen voor een strijd.

Nahja.. popelen. Je weet wel wat ik bedoel

[Blitzkrieg Bop]

tsja en die Amerikanen willen het land voor zichzelf hebben.......

[McCaine]

duyvel schreef:
tsja en die Amerikanen willen het land voor zichzelf hebben.......

Hoe kom je daarbij?

[Quivarum]

De grootste olierechten zijn al lang vergeven, voor een groot deel aan Duitsland, Frankrijk en Rusland, dus de Amerikanen hebben weinig economisch belang bij een bezetting door Amerikanen zelf. Een VN-vredesmacht na de oorlog is veel realistischer

[Roberto15]

Als Amerika Irak zou veroveren zullen ze natuurlijik ook de olierechten voor een deel opeisen

(anders zouden ze die oorlog nooit voeren)

[Blitzkrieg Bop]

McCaine schreef:
Hoe kom je daarbij?

lijkt me nogal duidelijk, ze hebben echt geen medelijden met het Iraakse volk oid als je dat soms d8

[Blitzkrieg Bop]

Quivarum schreef:
De grootste olierechten zijn al lang vergeven, voor een groot deel aan Duitsland, Frankrijk en Rusland, dus de Amerikanen hebben weinig economisch belang bij een bezetting door Amerikanen zelf. Een VN-vredesmacht na de oorlog is veel realistischer

Ware het niet dat die er nou juist niet gaat komen als het aan Bush ligt. De nieuwe vn resolutie komt er echt niet door....ik verwacht wel een Frans veto eigenlijk. Dan kan Amerika zelfstandig aanvallen zonder de vn te hebben gepasseerd, en dat is nou precies wat ze willen!

Bovendien zijn die contracten met het regime-Saddam gesloten, niet met Iraakse bedrijven. Met de val van dat regime zijn de Amikaanse oliebelangen weer veilig gesteld

[Anonymous John]

duyvel schreef:
lijkt me nogal duidelijk, ze hebben echt geen medelijden met het Iraakse volk oid als je dat soms d8

Of ze medelijden hebben met het volk of niet, nadat ze de olie ervan hebben zie ik niet waarom ze verder nog iets met de grond zouden willen.

[Blitzkrieg Bop]

Anonymous John schreef:
Of ze medelijden hebben met het volk of niet, nadat ze de olie ervan hebben zie ik niet waarom ze verder nog iets met de grond zouden willen.

Omdat ze het kunnen gebruiken voor een permanent amerikaanse militaire aanwezigheid in de Golfregio.

Omdat ze er een pro-amerikaanse regering willen installeren, die de olietoevoer kan veiligstellen. En dat kan alleen als ze volledige zeggenschap over het land hebben.

[Gatara]

Meer nieuws dat je in het westen niet/nauwelijks hoort:

MPs concerned over Turkish occupation of Iraq Kurdistan

Tuesday, February25 , 2003 - © 2003IranMania.com

TEHRAN, Feb 24 (AFP) - Iranian Kurdish MPs have voiced concern to the UN chief and EU over a possible Turkish occupation of Iraqi Kurdistan in case of a US-led attack on Iraq, a newspaper reported on Monday.

Jomhouri-e-Islami said the MPs -- who account for 20 seats in Iran's290 -member parliament -- sent open letters to UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and European Union leaders.

In a separate message to President Mohammad Khatami, they also expressed concern at Iran's own silence over the prospect of Turkish troops entering northern Iraq in case of war, the daily said.

Iraq's neighbours Turkey, Syria and Iran fear a Kurdish state or autonomy in northern Iraq could trigger unrest among their own sizeable Kurdish minorities.

Iran's65 -million population includes around six million Kurds.
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Rafsanjani warns about US presence in the region

Tuesday, February25 , 2003 - © 2003IranMania.com

Tehran, Feb 24 - Head of the Expediency Council Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani here on Monday expressed concern over the Iraqi crisis and negative impacts of the presence of US military forces in the region, IRNA said.

Speaking in a meeting with Turkish Ambassador to Tehran Salahattin Alpar, Rafsanjani reiterated that Iran and Turkey as two powerful Muslim states could have prevented the escalation of crisis in the region.

According to the Public Relations Office of the Expediency Council, the former president added that regional countries, Iran and Turkey in particular, are expected to adopt active policy to prevent the outbreak of war in the region.

He further referred to cultural, economic, political, security, industrial, transportation, oil and gas as fields for expanding mutual ties, noting that unfortunately the main goals of ECO and D8, which were established to boost regional cooperation, have not been realized yet.

Alpar, for his part, pointed to the important role of the two neighboring countries in regional developments, and said that the sensitiveness of the region has redoubled the importance of the cooperation between Ankara and Tehran.

"Turkey respects Iraq's territorial integrity and opposes any unilateral military operation against the country," he reiterated, adding that Ankara believes that the Iraqi people should decide for their fate.

The ambassador pointed to the political, economic and security issues including regional developments and transfer of Iran's gas to Turkey as main commonalities brought the interests of the two states close to each other.
www.iranmania.com (news)
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JEDDAH (Online): Arab banks are likely to suffer losses of SR 225 billion ($ 60 billion) in the event of a US-led war on Iraq, according to the Arab Bank Federation. The potential losses to the Arab countries would be much higher than those suffered during the 1991 Gulf War, said Dr. Fouad Shakir, secretary-general of the federation. Dr. Yaseen Al-Jefry, an independent economist, said the losses were estimated in light of the those likely to be suffered by Arab economies in general during the war as a result of diminished economic activity. However, Saudi banker Mishter Al-Murshid discounted the fallout of a possible war as banks in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries are in an “excellent” state. “Even if the whole Gulf economy is affected, the banking situation will remain stable as Gulf banks enjoy high liquidity,” he explained. Al-Jefry said the banks would suffer losses due to economic depression, but “the solvency of Arab banks and their capital strength will enable them to withstand the shock.” Banker Talaat Hafiz said the figure was exaggerated as he does not estimate losses will exceed SR112.5 billion ($30 billion). The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) said earlier that it did not expect any major flight of capital from Saudi banks in the event of a war. Muhammad Al-Jasir, of SAMA, said the central bank is ready to meet any extraordinary demand for cash if war breaks out.

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F.P. Report ISLAMABAD: American offense against Iraq will create more complications and can take shape of third world war in the near future, said Federal Minister for Information and Media development Sheikh Rashid Ahmad on Monday. “Pakistan government wants peaceful solution of the issue,” he said while addressing the opening session of Executive body of Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists here at Press Club. He said that the government was fully acquaint of the sentiments of the public over the issue and no policy will be adopted sans masses will. There exists a written treaty between Pakistan government as well as Nawaz Sharif which reads ten years exile of the Sharif family”, he maintained. He informed to a question that Sharif family has not appealed to Pakistan government to take permission to travel to Britian from Saudi Arabia. About Karachi Imambargah’s firing he observed that the apathy and slackness of police made possible the attack. He termed the demise of Air Chief Mashaf Ali Mir, his spouse and fifteen other PAF men in Kohat plane crash as a national loss but Pakistan Air Force will, he added maintain its performance and superiority. He offered his services to play a role for the enforcement of seventh Wage Board. President Rawalpindi Press Club Muhammad Nawaz Raza on the occasion stressed Federal Minister for playing pivotal role in resolving problems of the paper industry.
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Relations between Turkey and Iraqi Kurds tense

* Unexpected tension erupted between Turkey and Iraqi Kurds because of the Iraqi opposition meeting in Erbil. Ankara fears the meeting will work against the vital interests of Turkey

Ozgur Eksi

Turkey's relations with Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) have tensed as Iraqi opposition groups prepare for a meeting in Erbil.

Turkish sources stated concerns about the meeting underlining that the participation to the meeting is less than expected and that it could turn out to be a meeting between Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Supreme Court of Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI).

Stating that Turkey is uneasy of the future of Iraq, a diplomatic source asking for full anonymity and said that Turkey considers the risk of `fait accompli` in a meeting and that Kurds will use the meeting in order to gain strength to their claims. Sources underline that Turkey has concerns whether the U.S. will succeed in preventing the establishment of an independent state in the region. Turkey, on the other hand, has not made any official statement on the issue.

Sources stated that Turkey does not plan to attend the meeting. Turkey held a 'wait and see' policy about the meeting until recently. Sources had stated that they would investigate the composition of the meeting.

Iraqi Turkoman Front (ITC) has considered not attending the meeting. Sources confirm that ITC have discussed attending the meeting but it is still uncertain if they will do so.

It was also underlined that Turkish was uneasy about KDP spokesman Hoshyar Zebari's recent statements. Sources declared that Zebari's "No one wants another fight of course, but if there is a forced incursion done under the pretext of `I'm going to give you forced aid` then believe me there will be uncontrolled clashes," were not welcomed by Turkey.

President George W. Bush's special envoy in Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad, who arrived Turkey on Thursday to attend the meeting, is allegedly still in Turkey. Sources refused to declare where he is for security reasons but mention that he was filmed on Monday morning in Ankara.

Another source of aggression between Turkey and KDP is the passage of Turkish journalists to the meeting. According to well-informed sources, Turkey wants to provide security to journalists and wants to carry them to Erbil in a convoy, but a KDP source did not agree. According to information, KDP has underlined that the region is secure and that journalists can freely reach Erbil without the protection of Turkish troops.
The KDP denies blocking access to journalists.

In a written press release, KDP denied claims that "a large press delegation waiting on the Turkish side of the border have been prevented from crossing into Iraqi Kurdistan by Kurdish authorities." The statement stressed that the claims were untrue. "At present, over 150 foreign journalists have been accredited here and are working in complete freedom across the region."

The statement accused Turkey of not cooperating with Kurdish authorities. The release read, "The Turkish authorities have demanded that the journalists waiting at Silopi are accompanied by a large number of their journalists from security departments as minders and escorts and they insist that these journalists use translators provided by Turkish authorities."

Bronnen:
Iran: www.iranmania.com
Pakistan: www.frontierpost.com.pk
Turkije: http://www.turkishdailynews.com