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 | Monday, May 08, 2000, updated at 11:11(GMT+8) | ||||||||||||
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Iraq Protests to Arab League Over U.S., British Air StrikesIraq has informed the Arab League (AL) of the continuation of the U.S. and British warplanes' air strikes against its civilian and service facilities, a report said on Sunday.In a letter to AL Secretary General Ahmed Esmat Abdel-Meguid, Iraqi Foreign Minister Mohammad Said Al-Sahaf elaborated the bombings and violations by U.S. and British planes on April 24-30, when the U.S. and British jets carried out 195 armed sorties from their bases in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Sahaf stressed that these hostilities have become a constant policy of the U.S. and Britain, with the aim of impinging on Iraq's sovereignty and territorial integrity. Iraq "categorically" rejected the so-called two no-fly zones imposed by the U.S. and Britain in northern and southern Iraq. U.S. and British planes have been enforcing the no-fly zones which were set up shortly after the 1991 Gulf War, with the claimed aim to protect the Shiite Muslims and Kurds from the forces of President Saddam Hussein. Iraq has never recognized the two air-exclusion zones. Sahaf urged the pan-Arab forum to condemn and intervene to stop the U.S. and British aggressions against Iraq, the report said. "Iraq reserves its full right to defend itself and protect its sovereignty and security," said Sahaf, adding that Iraq demands compensation from the U.S. and Britain for the "material and moral damage" it has suffered due to such hostilities. Iraq's air defense artillery have constantly challenged the U.S. and British planes by targetting the aircraft with surface-to-air missiles and anti-aircraft artillery.
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