Iraq unconditionally accepted the UN’s disarmament resolution yesterday.

In a nine-page letter to UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, the Iraqi Foreign Minister also denied it is hiding any weapons of mass destruction.

The letter denounced President Bush and “his lackey Tony Blair.” Of the UN Security Council, the letter stated: “He who remains silent in the defense of truth is a dumb devil. Nothing seems more reprehensible than the silence maintained by those who represented their nations in the Security Council…”

The letter warned Baghdad will be sending another document laying out the clauses of the resolution which it deems contrary to international law. According to the BBC, this has prompted some speculation that the Iraqis may challenge the weapons inspections team. The team is due to arrive in Iraq on Monday with a mandate to inspect all suspected weapons’ sites.

Guests:

• Jeremy Scahill, Democracy Now! correspondent in Iraq.
• Gazwan Al-Mukhtar, retired Iraqi engineer whose house was searched by UN weapons inspectors in 1997. He is a graduate of Marquette University in Milwaukee. He had a business selling medical equipment but had to close it down because of the sanctions. His bank account was also frozen in London.

Related link:

• Iraq Journal