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Egyptian FM Raps US-British Bombing of Iraq as Unjustifiable
Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa Monday slammed the latest US-British air raids against Iraq as "negative and unjustifiable," the state-run Middle East News Agency reported.
Moussa, who was accompanying Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on an official visit to Italy, told the Egyptian Television that "the U.S.-British strike against Iraq is an unexpected, negative and unjustifiable step that leads to a lot of confusion in the region."
He criticised that the bombings, which killed two and injured 20 others, came when the Iraqi government was making efforts to start a dialogue with the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan on the Iraqi issue.
"Dialogue is the only way to resolve disputes and the recent anti-Iraqi strike would only worsen the situation," Moussa said.
According to the Pentagon, 24 US and British warplanes struck five Iraqi military targets, eight to 32 kilometers from the Iraqi capital Baghdad, using various long-range precision-guided weapons.
The attack, called by the US as a "routine mission," was the first on Baghdad since December 1998, when the US and Britain launched a four-day bombardment against Iraq for its alleged refusal to cooperate with UN arms inspectors.
This was also the first air strike against Iraq ordered by US President George W. Bush.
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