Saddam ends campaign for volunteers to fight Israel

[FettsBabe]

Saddam ends campaign for volunteers to fight Israel
November 10, 2000
Web posted at: 7:04 AM EST (1204 GMT)


BAGHDAD, Iraq (Reuters) -- President Saddam Hussein announced on Friday the end of a month-long campaign for volunteers to fight Israel, saying more than six million Iraqis had come forward.

Volunteers between October 10 and November 10 had totaled 6,607,306 including 2,051,791 women, Saddam said.

"We consider this day the 10th of November the last day for registering names of volunteers," Saddam said in a message read on state television and radio and carried by INA news agency.

He had ordered early in October the opening of military training camps "for volunteers willing to launch Jihad (holy war) to liberate Palestine."

On Friday he said the campaign was intended to show "enemies and some of the good people" the stand and determination of the Iraqi people.

"When we opened doors for volunteering we knew...that the Iraqi people was psychologically and ideologically ready and practically prepared together with its armed forces to fight for liberating Palestine from the river to the sea," Saddam said.

Saddam announced the volunteer campaign shortly after the eruption of Israeli-Palestinian violence which has killed at least 190 people in the past six weeks, the vast majority of them Palestinians.

Saddam said in October Iraq was ready to "put an end to Zionism" if Arab rulers did not defend the Palestinians against Israel.

Iraq has always taken a hard line towards Israel and fired Scud missiles at it during the 1991 Gulf War. It opposes peace agreements signed between Israel and the Palestinians and those signed by Israel with Egypt and Jordan.


**We need to catch this loser and put him away for life. To bad most of his people are brainwashed and are protecting him.

Between Israel/Palestine, U.S. Presidency, Russian Hijacking, etc. It seems that the world is about to collapse with instability.

Am I the only one bothered by all of this instability. Why can't we live in peace?

 

[DaBoneHead]

Well, I don't think Israel is going to lose any sleep over this... especially since their estimated 250-500 hirshoma size (12-20 kiloton) nuclear warheads could put quite a dent in his six million voluteers.

Sadaam really could care less about the palestinian cause. He does this *voluteer* thing to show that he is *ready* to fight for the arab cause, and thus promote arab unity. You see, he then hopes that arab unity will then pressure the US and the UN (sometimes the same organization) to lift sanctions and let the Iraqi's get back to the thing they do best -- Promoting *disunity* by bullying its neighbors.

This too shall pass.

 

[sweetrobin]

No you arent the only one bothered by this ... there is atleast two of us ... but I'm sure there are more too ... you cant look at all these situations and wonder what the heck is going on with humanity today ...

 

[Chef0083]

This is no surprise to me. It seems there is going to be more fighting there and we should stay out of it and I for one feel we should no longer aid Israel if they are not willing to do more than talk about stopping this.

DaBoneHead: Do you really WANT Israel to drop Nuclear Weapons on Iraq or Iraqi soldiers? I for one don't even want to consider the ramifications of such an action.

 

[DaBoneHead]

My $.02.

The world today is in better shape than it has been in a long time.

The role of the United States in world affairs is subtley changing, and the catch-phrase for this change that both candidates have used is "A more humble America".

Let me try to explain.

During the cold war, the United States had an adversary... a cause. The US did what it thought it needed to do to stem what was seen as communist conspiracy. This lead to overt and covert wars, with the US at the fore-front of virtually every major conflict that occurred since 1938.

Today, the adversaries the US faces are not as cut and dry. The emerging policy is to bolster sphere's of influence, and work with orderly regional powers. For instance, the US through the UN assisted in only a support role the Australians who did such a marvelous job of bringing order to East Timor. And with Nato and Kosovo, though the US lent the majority of air power, the Europeans provided the bulk of the ground forces.

Within ten years, the only place that the US might take a lead (militarily) will be in the American theatre, or the direct American sphere of influence. If some violent rebels overthrew mexico, or panama, we would get directly involved right away, but as far as overseas, the US will use more diplomatic pressure, and leave regional powers like NATO, and that funny named coalition of NZ, Austrailia, and America (Little help here DaBanshee, I can never rememeber its name).

Rather then strut around the world smiting foes, we will talk softly, work with nations, but carry a big stick (just in case).

The only region that really gives us fits for an effective management strategy is Africa. The US's strategy on Africa just doesn't exist. My personal belief is that if intervention is ever called upon (like in Sierre Leone), the US will not heed the call, and leave it to the European to reign in their former colonies. The somalia affair is now engrained on the US policy makers psyche.

The recent Cole attack, though a tragedy, is also interesting. You see, our arab allies know that the US is gradually trying to extricate itself from many areas of the world, so many terrorist groups are being careful not to target the US, in fear of having us change our minds and stay deployed around the world to deal with them. Therefore, only a terrorist who has nothing to lose would do something so stupid. And, since terrorists are most often state sponsored, only a nation that also has nothing to lose by attacking a US target would do this. The math all adds up to Afghanistan (who has no real relations with the US) and Bin Laden.

I have no idea how we will strike back. A missle strike seems logical, though pundits would point to the fact that the last one failed to kill him (though we were close! A rumor has it he was leaving the base and driving down a road, and got to see several missles streak over his car, on the way to leveling his base).

Anyways, provided we don't go into a recession, the first decade of the twenty-first century could be one of the high-points in US history. We earned a break.

 

[Talon]

DaBoneHead,

Australia-New Zealand-United States Security Treaty [ANZUS]

 

[DaBoneHead]

Talon,


Thank you. For some reason, I always forget how they arrange their letters. I keep forgetting that Australia uses only its first letter, and not 'AU'.

 

[Whitedog]

I believe what the bible has predicted for 2000 years... paraphrased, of course
"The dung is going to hit the fan... and there's nothing anyone can do to stop it. Just sit back watch, and wait."
It's not going to get any better IMO.