Editorial: Inspecting Iraq

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    A group of 17 inspectors with the U.N. insignia emblazoned on their uniforms returned to Baghdad to begin what Washington lawmakers are calling a game of hide and seek.

    The hunt for weapons of mass destruction begins anew. But, is this a setup for the beginning of war against Iraq? Hopefully not.

    The Iraqi leadership denies there are any chemical, biological or nuclear weapons in the country. This is the first time since 1998 that inspectors have been allowed to search for such weapons. The team is comprised of six nuclear experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna and 12 inspectors from the New York-based U.N. commission.

    An advance logistics teams set up a base to work from in an effort to search an area equivalent to the size of California.

    This is all in compliance with the U.N.-administered Resolution 1441. The resolution obliges Baghdad and Saddam to allow the inspectors to peer into every nook of the country.

    Iraqi authorities made public an angry letter to the United Nations over the resolution?s terms. In the first detailed response since Iraq accepted the resolution in November, Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri issued a blow-by-blow reply. He claimed the real motive behind the inspections was to create pretexts to attack Iraq under an international cover.

    Baghdad agreed to produce a full account of its weapons program by a December deadline and said U.N. inspectors would be given free access to all sites across the country.

    The inspectors must provide a first report to the U.N. Security Council by Jan. 27.

    These inspections must be given ample time to be performed. Rushed, hurried and harassed inspectors will only result in non-comprehensive results. Iraq officials should cooperate to make sure, to the fullest, that the inspectors have full access.

    In addition, it must be said that the inspectors should be held accountable to ensure that the results are valid. Using the ruse that they are looking for weapons and later turning on the Iraqi government would not only cause a credibility problem, but challenge the very reason why the American people would want to overthrow Saddam Hussein.

    We feel it is important to eliminate any weapon of mass destruction, and we support the inspections. But we challenge any U.N. posturing that might be used to show any pretexts to war.

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