CAIRO Ñ Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has for the first time signaled openness to an
Arab plan for his exile in an effort to prevent a U.S.-led war against Iraq.
Arab diplomatic sources said Saddam has agreed to send a senior aide to
discuss "personal issues." The sources
said the aide could arrive in Cairo over the weekend for talks on a plan to organize asylum in a Middle East country.
On Monday, Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz said Saddam would
never leave Iraq
Saddam's envoy was identified as Ali Hassan Al Majid, a senior member
of the Iraqi Revolutionary Council.
Majid, known as "Chemical Ali," has been
accused of ordering Iraqi chemical weapons attacks on Kurds in northern Iraq
in the 1980s, Middle East Newsline reported.
The sources said Saddam has not accepted the Arab plan, promoted by
Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkey. But they said the Iraqi president has agreed
to explore the prospect that he, his family and aides would find safe haven
in an Arab capital along with Western guarantees that he would not be
prosecuted by any foreign government or international court.
On Tuesday, the London-based A-Sharq Al Awsat reported that Saddam plans
to send a message through Al Majid that the Iraqi president would not
consider any plan for exile. The newspaper quoted an Iraqi official as
saying that Al Majid's visit is meant to update Mubarak on the situation in
Iraq and the activities of United Nations weapons inspectors.
"Saddam Hussein will never leave his country, but will
stay there until the last Iraqi shot is fired," Aziz told the London-based
British Broadcasting Corp. "The danger will be greater for Iraq if the
president leaves."
But the sources said Saddam agreed that Al Majid would discuss what they
termed "personal issues" with his Egyptian hosts. The sources said Al Majid,
Saddam's cousin, was chosen over Iraq's prime minister or foreign minister.
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who said any exile plan must be
approved by the United States, is expected to meet Al Majid. Diplomatic
sources said this will be the first high-level contact between Baghdad and
Cairo since the visit by Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri to Egypt in
November.
