Saddam ready for war
Mon, January 06, 2003
Source: Anannova
Saddam Hussein has accused the United Nations weapons inspectors of being American spies and said Iraq is prepared for war.
Saddam ready for war
Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has said United Nations weapons inspectors are carrying out "pure intelligence work".
He denounced the work of the teams sent to monitor Iraq's compliance with demands to disarm, saying they were exceeding their mandate. "Instead of searching for so-called weapons of mass destruction to reveal the lies of liars... the inspection teams became interested in compiling lists of Iraqi scientists, ask workers questions that are not what they seem and gather information about army camps and legitimate military production. "These things, or most of them, are pure intelligence work," he said in a television broadcast.
He said Iraq had prepared for a possible attack led by the United States and predicted victory. President Saddam described US threats to disarm Iraq by force as the "hiss of snakes and bark of dogs" and issued a defiant rallying cry to troops.
He used a televised speech to mark Army Day to say forces who followed Allah would always be victorious over others.
He praised the "valiant men and women" who served in Iraq's army and said his country would win any conflict with the United States. US President George W Bush is threatening Iraq with military action if it does not disarm according to United Nations demands.
Iraq said last week that UN inspectors had visited 230 sites and had found no evidence of banned nuclear, chemical or biological weapons. Baghdad says it has no weapons but has warned that the US is planning an invasion anyway to seize control of Iraq's valuable oil reserves.
President Saddam said peace was still possible. "If the aggressors chose a way other than this, we should all be happier," he said in the nationally broadcast address. But he called on God to destroy anyone who attacked Iraq. "Smite them with your wrath," he said.
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