- BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi
President Saddam Hussein has said in a Christmas message the U.S. war on
terrorism will lead the world to "catastrophe".
"America is leading a military campaign, under the cover of fighting
terrorism, against freedom-fighting movements and nations which reject
the principle of hegemony," he said, echoing his regular accusation
that the United States is trying to impose its own domination on the world.
"What is happening in Afghanistan will lead the world to catastrophe,"
Saddam said in a statement distributed to reporters in Baghdad ahead of
Christmas on Tuesday.
"It is time for us to be united and alert to foil the plots of our
enemies and safeguard our sovereignty and unity," he added in apparent
reference to speculation that Washington could eventually turn its attention
from Afghanistan to Iraq.
U.S. President George W. Bush has warned Saddam he would suffer unspecified
consequences if he does not readmit international weapons inspectors to
Iraq.
Saddam slammed the 11-year-old U.N. sanctions imposed on Baghdad after
its 1990 invasion of Kuwait and also condemned U.S. and British enforcement
of no-fly zones in the north and south of Iraq, calling it "continuous
military aggression".
Turning to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Iraqi leader accused Israel
of "killing Palestinians in cold blood and encroaching upon Muslim
and Christian holy shrines".
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