US Closely Watching Iraq Amid Rising Palestinian-Israeli Violence

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Tuesday, January 22, 2002

US Closely Watching Iraq Amid Rising Palestinian-Israeli Violence

Senior U.S. military and intelligence officials have set foot in the Mideast to mull with allies the ongoing anti-terror war and the situation in Iraq, leaving behind no sign of any further efforts to end the Palestinian-Israeli violence.

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The U.S. closely watching Iraq

The U.S. has recently zoomed in on Iraq amid fears that Iraq, which the U.S. claims is developing weapons of mass destruction, would undermine the anti-terror efforts and the U.S. interests in the region.

"It's a global war on terrorism, so terrorists, those who support and harbour them and also those who conduct research and development of production of weapons of mass production, we consider all those are objectives. We are going to find them," visiting U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Richard Myers said on Sunday.

Myers' trip coincided with another visit by a senior U.S. intelligence official -- Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Robert Mueller, who left Cairo Sunday for Saudi Arabia.

Both officials came after a war of words between the U.S. and Iraq.

The U.S. claims that Iraq has been developing weapons of mass destruction in the absence of U.N. arms inspectors, who have been rejected by Iraq since the U.S.-British strikes on Iraq in December 1998.

On Wednesday, U.S. President George W. Bush issued a stern warning to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein that Iraq should allow United Nations arms inspectors back or face consequences, sparking fears that the U.S. might attack Iraq under the pretext of the ongoing anti-terror campaign.

Iraqi President Saddam Hussein hit back the next day, saying the U.S. is inevitably heading toward an abyss for its insistence on wrongdoings.

In Cairo, Myers and Mueller asserted that the next step of the U.S. war on terror has not been decided, leaving many to speculate that Iraq may be the next target of choice.

Arabs have expressed worry that any actions against an Arab country, including Iraq, would have a "negative impact" on the already worsened regional situation.

"Attacking Iraq or any other Arab state would be unjustifiable and lead to the collapse of the international coalition against terrorism," Arab League chief Amr Moussa has warned recently.

The Palestine Issue Key to Anti-Terror War

While the U.S. is focusing on Iraq, Arab countries hold the Palestine issue as key to success in anti-terror war.

On Sunday, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said that the success of the anti-terror war hinges on international cooperation in helping end the regional violence and establish an independent Palestinian state.

"Giant nations, even the majority of the Israelis know quite well that the establishment of an independent Palestinian state is considered to be one of conditions for achieving peace and security in the world," he said in a televised speech to mark Egypt's Police Day.

The Palestinian-Israeli violence has been escalating over the past few days with deaths tolls on both sides rising.

Early Monday, the Israeli army re-occupied the West Bank town of Tulkarm, killing one Palestinian and injuring 10 others.

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who has been under siege in the West Bank town of Ramallah since early December, is calling on the international community to help end the Israeli aggression against the Palestinians.

"The situation in the West Bank and Gaza Strip is like on the top of a volcano that threatens the whole region," Arafat said in a letter to U.S. President George W. Bush, urging Bush to personally interfere to help calm down the raging situation.

So far, however, there has been no indication that U.S. Mideast envoy Anthony Zinni, who ended his second mediation mission on December 6, will be back to the region.

The U.S. has also given a cold shoulder to a Palestinian request for an international protection force.

"The current problem lies in the fact that the U.S. administration is still dealing with Israel as a state above law," chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said.

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