Ladies and Gentlemen, good afternoon.  I would like first to saya few things, then I will recieve your questions. As the whole world hasbeen deeply shocked by a new American and British military aggression againstIraq, which they have started yesterday after midnight. They call it OperationDesert Fox. In fact, it is Operation Villains in the Arabian Desert.

Yesterday, the American president, the prime minister of Britain andother ministers in the American administration and in the British governmentclaimed that they have committed this act of aggression against Iraq becausethe report presented by the executive chairman of the special commissionto the secretary-general of the United Nations showed that Iraq did notcooperate fully.

I would like to remind you, and through you I would like to remind thetwo governments who are fully responsible for their act of aggression againstIraq -- I mean the American and the British governments -- that the secretary-general,Mr. Kofi Annan, had received two reports, the first one on the 14th ofDecember, presented to him by the IAEA, the International Atomic EnergyAgency.

The IAEA in its report had stated clearly that the Iraqi counterparthas provided the necessary level of cooperation to enable the above-enumeratedactivities to be completed effectively and -- efficiently and effectively.

During the whole yesterday up to now, may I ask you and ask the worldpublic opinion, have you heard anything from the American administrationor the British government, anything, any mention of the report of the IAEA?

The answer is none -- not. They haven't mentioned anything about, becausethey cannot benefit from it for their own evil intentions. Because thereport of the IAEA had stated clearly that Iraq had provided the necessarylevel of cooperation to enable the above-enumerated activities to be completedefficiently and actively.

They lied to the world shamelessly, saying that the report of the executivechairman of UNSCOM showed that Iraq had not cooperated. Well, may I giveyou briefly facts and figures?

Since the resumption of cooperation between Iraq and UNSCOM on the 17thof November, UNSCOM had sent to Iraq eight inspection teams.

They had operated 427 inspections. I repeat, 427 inspections to 427sites. Two hundred ninety-nine of those sites are included in the ongoingmonitoring regime -- 128 sites even not included in the ongoing monitoringregime, but still they asked to inspect them and we accepted.

They said -- the Americans and the British said Iraq did not cooperate.Well, out of the total inspections, which is 427, they mentioned that therewere cases of non-cooperation in five cases.

Well, again, I want to tell you briefly and through you to the wholeworld, what were those five cases upon which the American administrationand the British government had committed a dangerous crime against thepeople of Iraq because of those five cases?

One, they wanted to inspect a small headquarter of the political party,the Arabat (ph) Socialist Party. We asked them: What is the relation betweensmall headquarter of a political party and a disarmament mission? Theydidn't answer.

The second case, they came to inspect a small building which previouslywas the office of the deputy of the director general of the special securityorganization.

Then later on this post had been canceled. No more. There is no deputy.So the office had been changed to be a guest house.

The Iraqi counterpart was explaining to the chief inspector, which isthe Australian, Roger Hill, that this is no longer an office, this is nowa guest house. So while explaining to the chief inspector, they -- it tookit about 20 minutes, about -- around 30 minutes. They put it in the reportthis is one of the violations. You have delayed us about 45 minutes. Soyou deserve to be bombarded, because you have delayed an inspection teamfor 45 minutes, only to explain to them that this guest house, no longeran office. After that they have inspected it. This is the second one.

Then there is two cases where they demanded that they want to inspectestablishments on Fridays. We told them that, according to the agreementwith UNSCOM, not all Iraqi establishments function or work on Friday onthe weekend, only small number of them. If that establishment is workingon Friday, you are welcome. If it is not, well, we will go with you, butthere are no people there. This is the agreement. They came on Friday andthey insisted. We told them that we will go along, according to the agreement.

So, there are two cases of violation, they considered those two casesa violation, which  we are not working on Fridays. Because we arenot working on Fridays, this is a violation of the Security Council resolutions.This is noncooperation attitude, so we are deserved, we are deserving thebombardment. The fourth case which is the fifth case, a chief inspectorwhich is an American woman, Diana Simon, she went to Baghdad Universityand she demanded that she wants to interview the undergraduate students-- please pay attention to this -- she wants to interview all undergraduatestudents in the science college in Baghdad University.

The Iraqi counterpart told her that this is incredible. What's the purposeof interviewing undergraduate? What was the relation between Iraqi undergraduatestudents and disarmament? Usually, UNSCOM asks to interview some of thepost graduates for the master degree, for the doctorate degree.

Because we told this American lady that it is very difficult to comprehend,to understand that UNSCOM needs to interview undergraduate Iraqi studentsfor the mission of disarmament of Iraq.

Ladies and gentlemen, those are the five cases on which the Americanadministration, the British government had depended upon to say that wehad a material breach of the Security Council resolutions and this an evidencethat Iraq is not cooperating, so the Operation Villains in the ArabianDesert should be launched against you.

Well, what had happened yesterday? They said that they want to destroythe Iraqi mass destruction weapons in order to lie to the world, to thewhole world that Iraq still possessing mass destruction weapons.

Just like that, cheap lies in order to deceive the world; in order tohave the pretext to commit aggression against Iraq. Second, they say inorder to prevent Iraq from rebuilding its mass destruction weapons.

Third, they said -- and this is very strange -- they said we want todegrade Iraq's ability to threaten its neighbors. And they said, we aregoing after the forces which sustain the rule of President Saddam Hussein.And it seems to me that the last target, it is an advice from Kissingerto the American administration.

They said, he mentioned today that he advised the American administrationto go after the forces that would sustain the rule of President SaddamHussein. Well, what had happened yesterday after boasting those dissolute,corrupt politicians and spasmodic rulers in United States of America andBritain -- what they have done yesterday.

I'll give you examples. Instead of their lies, I'll give you exactlyexamples what are the sites they have attacked yesterday -- only examples.They attacked with the cruise missile the house of President Saddam Hussein'sdaughter, Hela (ph), and fortunately, she and her relatives were not atthat moment in their house. Well, is this one of the -- is this one ofthe forces which sustain the rule or the political system in Iraq?

Second, they bombarded also with cruise missiles several industrialestablishments, all of them are under completely under ongoing monitoring.All of them. First, Al Kaka Corporation. It is completely under ongoingmonitoring regime, and there are five cameras in that establishment, inthat corporation. Al Karama Corporation -- it is completely under strictongoing monitoring regime and there are 18 -- 18 -- monitoring cameras.Power company for pesticides. This small company produces brake oil forthe cars, for the automobiles. They attacked this site.

And Nida (ph) Corporation -- it is under complete ongoing monitoringregime, and there are three monitoring cameras in this corporation. ElKindi (ph) Company, and there are also eight cameras for monitoring inthis company. And amazingly, there is a small center called Al-Walid Center.It is a small training center. It trains fitarmen (ph) -- fitarmen (ph)-- it trains fitarmen (ph) for mechanics.

QUESTION: Oh, mechanics?

AL-SAHAF: Yes, mechanics. They attacked that small training center.

They attacked different districts in Baghdad, which is heavily populatedwith civilians. And one of them is Abuclan (ph) district. And I think someof you had visited that place. There is a building. There is heavy casualties,and collateral damage in those civilian quarters.

They attacked individual houses in several places in the capitol. Andthey attacked twice a small factory for dry batteries, batteries for lighttorches and other -- dry batteries.

And amongst the government buildings, they attacked the building ofthe security police. This office, the headquarters of the Iraqi securitypolice, it has been inspected more than once by the inspection teams ofUNSCOM, and they found nothing in it. Still, they bombarded it.

They bombarded also the military intelligence service headquarters.They have inspected that headquarters more than once. Still, they launchan attack by cruise missile on that headquarters.

So, ladies and gentlemen, the forces, these are examples to show youhow cheap liars are the officials, the leaders of the American regime andthe British regime. They think, unfortunately, that they can go away withtheir crime only by deception. And this is not -- will be not the case.

Lastly, I would like to say that this aggression against Iraq is a crimeagainst international law, the U.N. charter, and we will hold our fullright to hold them responsible fully, the Americans and the British, onall the crimes they are committing against our country and our people.