ANKARA Ñ Iraqi President Saddam Hussein is pressing Kurdish leaders
to approve the entry of government troops into the autonomous area of
northern
Iraq.
Kurdish sources said Saddam has sent several messages through envoys
that demand the deployment of troops and equipment near the oil-rich area of
Dohuk. The messages said the troops are required to protect Iraq from any
U.S.-led invasion from Turkey.
Saddam was quoted as saying that the military wants to establish a
reconnaissance and intelligence base at Dohuk near the Turkish border. Iraqi
forces have already been deployed along the frontier of the autonomous zone.
"As your debased enemies failed in the past, so will any aggressor fail,
if he lets himself be seduced into committing an act of evil," Saddam told
the military in an address on Sunday.
The sources said the base would have an advanced radar that would detect
enemy planes flying in from Turkey They said a Defense Ministry delegation
has already chosen a site for the base.
But the sources said Kurdish Democratic Party leader Massoud Barazani
refused Saddam's request. They said Saddam's troops have not tried to force
their way into Kurdistan.
The Iraqi regime has been pressing Kurds for the last year to concede on
control of the north. Kurdish sources said Saddam's agents have been
responsible for attacks on Kurds in such cities as Mosul and Suleimaniya.
The sources said Saddam has also used insurgents aligned with Saudi fugitive
Osama Bin Laden to launch a terror campaign in Kurdish communities.
Baghdad also wants to woo Turkey in the effort to regain control over
the north. Turkish sources said Saddam has offered to allow Turkey to
participate in a venture to explore for oil in the Dohuk area.
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