LONDON, February 7: Iraqi army commanders would rebel against President Saddam Hussein if they were convinced that an attack by the United States and Britain was aimed at removing him from power, Iraq's former head of military intelligence Kwafiq al-Samarai told the Times today.Kwafiq said a 10-day aerial bombing campaign would be sufficient and that Western ground forces would not be needed.
``Commanders suspect the US and the UK don't want Saddam to stay, but they need a clear message,'' Kwafiq was quoted as saying during an interview filed from Nicosia in Cyprus.
``If they bomb his Presidential palaces, communication centres and Baghdad television and radio, all commanders would get the message and some would move against him.''
Kwafiq fled Iraq in 1994 after being suspected of plotting against Saddam, but he has maintained high-level contacts in Baghdad, the Times said.The paper added that Kwafiq's assessment differs from that of American defence analysts who believe that Saddam could not beousted without flooding Iraq with troops.
Meanwhile, American President Bill Clinton and British Prime Minister Tony Blair agreed in Washington that efforts to persuade Iraq to allow United Nations inspectors to resume their work must be backed by the credible threat of force.
In a news conference at the White House, Clinton said ``If Saddam doesn't comply, we must be prepared to act. And we are.'' Blair said experience shows that diplomacy doesn't work with the Iraqi leader unless there is the threat of force to back it up.
The British Premier announced that eight tornado attack planes will be sent to Kuwait in the next few days.
Britain already has sent aircraft carrier Invincible to the Gulf to join the American flotilla that was already in place. No other country has offered to send military forces, but Clinton insisted that the backing of allies such as France is stronger than it appeared in public.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
