Iraqi Opposition Threatens to Annul Contracts

18 December 2002 Iraqi opposition exiles on Tuesday unveiled the results of a three-day confab in London, having agreed to set up a 65-member coordinating committee to follow up on principles and proposals agreed at the conference, and adopted in a main political statement and a document entitled the “transition period project.” The conference, attended by 350-plus delegates, focused on the roles of different groups and parties in a post-Saddam…

The Big Unknowns

18 October 2002 In 1979, the same year the US lost Iran and its oilfields to the Islamic revolution, Saddam Hussein was sworn in as president of Iraq. Twenty-three years later, the US appears poised to engage in another Mideast adventure designed to topple him. But there are a huge number of unknowns, all or any of which could turn the mission into a debacle. For Western diplomats, one of…

Divided They Stand

28 November 2002 After several delays — and a huge amount of infighting — key Iraqi dissidents in exile are finally set to meet in London on Dec. 10 with the goal of establishing a common stand over the shape of an Iraq without Saddam Hussein. Signs aren’t hopeful. The meeting, called by the US administration, is expected to discuss issues ranging from the establishment of a government in exile…