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In association with the Rosh Hoshanah new moon this week, a critical turning point in the stock market and world history appears to be at-hand.
The current turning point may very well be of biblical significance. As noted in many of my other articles, in recent years there has been numerous heavenly signs like the Comets Hyakutake and Hale-Bopp and a series of lunar eclipses on the major Jewish holidays that apparently are forewarning great trouble for Israel and this world.
Indeed, a special planetary alignment in late-January of this year seemed to signal the End of the Age of Pisces and the beginning of the Age of Aquarius
Thus, this new Jewish year might very well be the beginning of a new age for this world. Accordingly, a historical turning point of Millenial proportions could be at hand- something indicated by long-wave patterns in stock prices and general commodity prices (and indicated by the Rosh Hoshanah new moon since it was of "Spiral Calendar" significance to the U.S. stock market).
Importantly, the current situation in the U.S. stock market and world politics is a remarkable parallel of what occurred in 1973 and 1990. When the DJIA peaked near 1000 in October of 1973, it coincided with the last Arab/Israeli war which started when Syria led an Arab surprise attack against the Jewish state on Yom Kippur- the Day of Atonement. The subsequent oil-shock brought about a 40 percent drop in stock prices by October of the following year. Similarly, when the Dow reversed from the 3000 mark in mid-July of 1990 (closed two days in a row at 2999.75 and turned down), it coincided with a speech in which Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein threatened Kuwait. A couple of weeks later, Iraq invaded Kuwait, oil prices surged and stock prices plunged 20 percent by October of that year.
This week, as the DJIA reached above 8000 with the Rosh Hoshanah new moon, there were new signs of war in the Middle East. First off, in response to a Turkish incursion in northern Iraq, Baghdad has threatened to retaliate. Possibly in connection with this, both Syria and Iran have started to build- up military forces at their borders with Turkey and northern Iraq. Meanwhile, supposedly in reaction to Iraqi and Iranian violations of "No-Fly Zones" in southern Iraq, the U.S. has beefed-up is military presence in the Persian Gulf and has ordered an aircraft carrier battlegroup to hurry toward the region. Consequent to these developments, oil prices have surged to multi-month highs and may soon become a negative shock on financial markets and the world economy.
Unfortunately, the odds are that this time around it is going to be a far more severe crisis in the Middle East than anything that has occurred in history. As I have been warning for years, what is coming is a Grand Supercycle crash most likely in the form of "Saddam's Revenge". Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait and the 1991 Gulf War were not what they seemed to be. Rather than being a great victory for the West, the Persian Gulf Crisis and War were part of a strategic deception carried-out by Saddam Hussein's Iraq and the Arab powers on the behalf of Moscow. The ultimate goal of this deception is likely what we are witnessing now. A situation in which seeming imperialist aggression by the U.S. and Western allies (in particularly Turkey) against Iraq leads to an all-out war in the Middle East that ultimately will result in the destruction of Israel and the Western powers- the long-term objective of Russia and the hardline Arab states.
"War to the hilt between communism and capitalism is
inevitable. Today, of course, we are not strong enough to
attack. Our time will come in thirty or forty years. To win,
we shall need the element of surprise. The Western world will
need to be put to sleep. So we shall begin by launching the
most spectacular peace movement on record. There shall be
electrifying overtures and unheard of concessions. The
capitalist countries, stupid and decadent, will rejoice to
cooperate to their own destruction. They will leap at another
chance to be friends. As soon as their guard is down, we shall
smash them with our clenched fist."
(Dmitrii Z. Manuilskii)
(Lenin School of Political Warfare, Moscow, 1931)
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Particularly during the past decade, man has become utterly self-deceived. The seeming fall of world communism and collapse of the Soviet Union was a staged deception. Why do you think the nuclear-armed communist East, hellbent on destroying the West and taking over the world, would suddenly decide to convert to Western capitalism and give up its pursuit of world domination at our expense just as the "Window of Vulnerability" was opening up? Why would the Arab powers, wholly devoted to the destruction of the Jewish State and increasingly armed-to-the-teeth, suddenly do a total flip-flop and seek peace? I do not believe this is because man transformed into a peace-loving, reasonable creature over the past several years. To the contrary, it is because some men love war while other men love money; hence, the basis for mutually disadvantageous false agreements to bring about a third world war and global self-destruction. The military powers of the East, seeking war, have offered the West a false peace in order to instill a false sense of security and secure the element of surprise to launch a successful attack. The economic powers of the West, seeking money, have accepted this false peace out of desire for material security, economics prosperity and new markets to exploit. Thus, the forces of greed and fear have come together in the name of creating global harmony and peace when, in reality, they are leading the world toward utter disharmony and a self-destructive holocaust of mass destruction.
(comment by Saddam Hussein following the Gulf War)
The shape the coming war will take is revealed by the lies the West has been told. One of the most obvious parts of the East's deception involves Saddam Hussein's Iraq. Why do you think Saddam invaded Kuwait and picked a fight with the West just over seven years ago? At the time the West was looking for any excuse to curtail Iraq's growing military strength and pursuit of "The Bomb", since Western oil-interests and Israel's security were increasingly endangered. Yet, this is precisely what Saddam provided to the West. By invading Kuwait and threatening Saudi Arabia, Iraq gave the West a perfect excuse to wage a major war that would counter Saddam's growing military strength and the threat he posed to Israel and the oil-rich Persian Gulf region.
Since everything apparently went so well with the Gulf War, i.e., Iraq was quickly and decisively defeated and the world's oil supply was resecured, the West never considered the possibility that an ulterior motive might have been behind Saddam's seemingly reckless invasion of Kuwait and world confrontation. Yet, an ulterior motive there likely was: to make Iraq a symbolic victim of Western imperialism and world "Zionism" in order give Saddam justification for triggering a jihad, or holy war, against Israel and the West.
With Iraq's violent defeat by the West in the Gulf War, continuing U.S.-enforced economic sanctions against Baghdad and covert U.S. efforts to oust Saddam Hussein from power, Saddam's Iraq increasingly appears to be a victim of relentless Western imperialism in the oil-rich Arab world. In other words, Saddam has provoked the West into taking actions against his country that fit his conspiratorial worldview of Western "Zionist" oppression of Iraq and other Arab countries. In this way, Saddam is creating an excuse to seek revenge against the U.S. and Western powers for the ongoing unfair treatment of Iraq and the Arab world in general. Since, if my hypothesis is correct, "Saddam's Revenge" will ultimately lead to the destruction of Israel and the West, the Iraqi dictator will end up looking like a great Arab hero who confronted the West, stomached tremendous imperialist oppression and eventually struck back such that his Zionist oppressors were ultimately destroyed. After the dust settles, Saddam can proclaim that Allah is on his side and force the Moslem world to submit to his divine rule.
How is it that "Saddam's Revenge" will result in the destruction of Israel and the West? After all, as a military, economic and/or political power, Saddam's Iraq appears to be about as isolated and weak as could be. That, however, is the trick of it.
As Sun-Tzu explains in the "Art Of War", 'if strong, feign weakness'; 'if unified, project division'. Thus, Saddam's Iraq and Iraq's allies-of-old, i.e., the other Arab military powers along with the "former" and ongoing communist military powers of the East, have gone out of their way to project the image of division and weakness in the East. Yet, overall, Saddam and the authoritarian military powers of the East are still sitting on the largest military-machine ever known to man. The Beast simply is not dead, regardless of what the East wants us to make us believe and what the West wants to 'make believe'.
The question now is: In what way is Saddam going to seek revenge, and how will this be associated with the rise of Russia and the destruction of Israel and the West? I believe the answer has been revealed to me.
Back during the Gulf War, in February of 1991, I was engaged in a written correspondence with Robert Prechter, the "Elliott Wave Theorist", about what might eventually cause the Grand Supercycle crash and bear market we were both anticipating at the time. One evening I was watching television when suddenly a special report aired of a chemical SCUD attack against Israel. Surprised that Saddam had launched such a provocative attack, I contacted friends to let them know what happened. As I returned to the television to catch more news on the attack, I found nothing was being reported. When I awoke the next day, there was nothing in the newspapers. All said and done, I discovered that no such report had aired at the time I saw it. Immediately after this odd experience, I mentioned to Mr. Prechter in a letter I was writing to him what I had seen. I speculated that I might had had a psychic vision of what would cause the Grand Supercycle collapse in the stock market we were expecting. Clearly an Iraqi chemical attack on Israel and a subsequent outbreak of some sort of new Arab/Israeli war would greatly upset investors' expectations and precipitate a large-scale decline in stock prices.
Right after sending this letter to Mr. Prechter, I had another experience that apparently revealed the full danger we were facing. Upon reading a Bible prophecy to a friend that I believe depicts a future nuclear war (the Seventh Seal prophecy in the eighth chapter of the Book of Revelation), my friend and I heard an air-raid siren followed by the bellowed percussion of a nuclear explosion. Coming so soon after my vision of a special report of a chemical SCUD attack on Israel, I concluded their must be a connection- the Grand Supercycle crash would involve an all-out war in the Middle East that would be followed by an all- out global war involving a nuclear holocaust.
From that moment on, my search began for what would lead to a Grand Supercycle crash in Western expectations via a nuclear third world war. Thus, I discovered how the world has been utterly deceived by Saddam Hussein and the authoritarian military powers of the East. Western expectations are being intentionally misled to irrational heights in order to open the way for an ultimate upset in the form of a surprise third world war.
How exactly is it that an Iraqi chemical attack against Israel will be associated with an eventual global nuclear war? Well, I believe I later discovered the answer to that question with the "Zhirinovsky Connection".
Vladimir Zhirinovsky and other Russian nationalists are supposedly Saddam Hussein's ally. In February of 1995, Zhirinovsky went to Baghdad and met with Saddam Hussein on February 26th, the fourth anniversary of Kuwait's liberation from Iraqi occupation and the second anniversary of the World Trade Center bombing which has been linked to Iraq. During a three- hour conversation they discussed a proposal by Zhirinovsky to create an anti-Western coalition between Russia, the Orthodox and Muslim world. Zhirinovsky told journalists after the meeting: "There is no confrontation between the North: Russia, and the South: the Arab and Muslim world". Zhirinovsky concluded his three-day visit to Baghdad by signing a draft accord to boost ties between Russia and Iraq.
The odds are that this suspicious connection between Saddam Hussein and Vladimir Zhirinovsky is signalling the upcoming events that will upset Wall Street's expectations and precipitate the Grand Supercycle crash. More specifically, there is reason to believe a new military confrontation between Iraq and the West is imminent that will be seemingly bring about a military coup in Russia and the rise to power of a right-wing dictator, possibly Vladimir Zhirinovsky.
It appears that Saddam about to about provoke a new military confrontation with the U.S., supposedly in response to the unremitting pressure being placed on Iraq. Because Iraq has consistently thwarted U.N. inspections of sites believed to be used for storing and manufacturing missiles and weapons of mass destruction, a report is going to be issued at the U.N. at the end of next week which will likely mean that economic sanctions against Iraq will not only continue but may very well be increased. In response, Saddam is apparently about to stop abiding by the ceasefire agreement that ended the Gulf War in 1991.
One way Iraq may provoke a new military confrontation with the U.S. is by violating the so-called "No-Fly Zones" that have been established in northern and southern Iraq. Given recent violations of the No-Fly Zones by Turkish and Iranian warplanes seeking to counter terrorist rebel groups based in Iraq, Saddam may chose to violate the No-Fly Zones supposedly to defend sovereign Iraqi territory. Indeed, after Iranian jets crossed into Iraqi air-space this week, Baghdad scrambled its own warplanes and briefly violated the southern No-Fly Zone. This violation is one of the reasons cited by the White House for the recent dispatch of an aircraft carrier battlegroup to the Persian Gulf. Washington has given a stern warning that another violation of the No-Fly Zones will not be tolerated and can result in a military response.
Another way Iraq might provoke a new fight with the U.S. is by taking military action in the U.N.-protected Kurdish enclave in northern Iraq. Since Washington has allowed Turkey to launch another large-scale military assault against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq, any U.S. military intervention to block Iraqi aggression in the U.N.-protected enclave will constitute a clear double-standard. Thus, Saddam can seek to demonstrate how his country is a victim of Western imperialism and hypocrisy by attacking the Kurdish north and thereby provoking U.N.-ordered retaliation by U.S. forces.
Even more dangerous, Saddam might send his forces north to directly confront and even fight against Turkish forces on Iraqi soil. The movement of Syrian and Iranian armed forces to the border with northern Iraq suggests Iraq might not be alone in such a fight against Turkey- a U.S.-supported NATO country. Clearly, such military action by Baghdad could stir a regional war much larger than the U.S. may be prepared to handle at this point.
One way or another, one should expect a new confrontation between Saddam and the West at the current juncture. This confrontation might involve Iraqi violations of No-Fly Zones in northern and southern Iraq and/or an Iraqi military assault against the U.N.- protected area in northern Iraq (and/or southern Iraq) which, in turn, will provoke a new fight with the U.S. and possibly Turkey and the Western alliance.
-Saddam Hussein
(From a speech he gave on the fourth anniversary of the
start of the Gulf War.)
Once the U.S. is bombing Iraq again, Saddam will have an excuse to seek revenge for the seemingly unending Western repression of, and military assaults against, his country. I believe this revenge will somehow involve what I've already foreseen: a chemical SCUD missile attack against Israel. That Saddam is planning such an attack, or is at least expecting to be involved with such an attack by another Arab power like Syria, explains why he threatened to "make fire eat up half of Israel" several months before ordering Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990. Furthermore, in a speech made on last year's anniversary of the start of the Gulf War, Saddam proclaimed: "The Arab countries should be asking themselves, 'Who will fire the 40th missile against Israel?'". Given that Iraq launched 39 SCUD missiles at Israel during the Gulf War, this clearly implies Baghdad is anticipating a new SCUD attack against the Jewish homeland.
Clearly, if Saddam's Iraq or Syria unleashes a chemical SCUD attack against Israel in connection with a new Persian Gulf crisis, an action that will revive memories of Hitler's gassing of the Jews, all-out war will likely erupt in the Middle East. The U.S. will most likely seek to finally get rid of Saddam's Hussein for destabilizing the oil-rich region.
With the U.S. at war again with Iraq, possibly at the same time that NATO is drawn into a war against the Serbs, a pretext will be created for Vladimir Zhirinovsky or some other right-wing dictator (Alexander Lebed?) to suddenly rise to power in Russia by way of a military coup. Western military action against historical Russian allies like Iraq and the Serbs will seemingly stir a nationalist backlash in Moscow that brings about such a coup.
With a nationalist dictator in the Kremlin and the U.S. and possibly Turkey and/or Israel at war with Iraq and possibly other Arab powers, the way will be opened for Russia's "Last Dash to the South" (the title of Vladimir Zhirinovsky's supposed autobiography); a Russian military campaign to dominate an arc of territory to Russia's south stretching from the Balkans to East Asia. A major objective of this campaign is to overrun the Middle/Near East and thereby rest control of the world's oil supply.
Russia's last dash to the south will probably be associated with some sort of new Arab/Israeli war. I believe such a war is planned in order to provoke the "Samson Option", Israel's policy of nuclear retaliation against the Arab powers and Russia should Israel be hopelessly overrun. Israel's use of nuclear weapons, in turn, will create an ideal pretext for an all-out Russian nuclear attack against the West which, after the dust settles, Moscow will argue the West brought upon itself.
Clearly, if Saddam's revenge takes the shape I expect and leads to the nuclear destruction of Israel and the West, then Wall Street's current high expectations, reflected in the DJIA trading above 8000, will be utterly upset. This upset of prevailing, misled expectations is effectively an ultimate crash, i.e., the Grand Supercycle crash. Saddam's revenge and a future nuclear war will, however, fulfill religious expectations as embodied in Biblical prophecy. As I explain in my article "The Truth" (see http://www.ucc.uconn.edu/~jpa94001/j03.html ), a global nuclear war is highly consistent with the Seventh Seal prophecy from the eighth chapter in the Bible's Book of Revelation. As explained above, about a week after I saw that mysterious special report of a chemical SCUD attack on Israel in February of 1991, a friend and I heard an air-raid siren and nuclear explosion upon reading the Seventh Seal prophecy aloud. Thus, in my mind there is little doubt that religious prophecy has everything to do with a future nuclear war.
As apocalyptic tradition holds, after the Seventh Seal is broken, the truth behind Christianity is revealed. The question thus arises as to how a nuclear war entails the revelation of truth. I think I might have an answer. As explained above, my potentially supernatural experiences in February of 1991 led me to critically reexamine events in the Persian Gulf up to that time. Based upon this examination, I figured out how Iraq, Moscow and the military powers of the East have been creating an historically unprecedented, global-scale deception in order to launch a nuclear surprise attack against the West. The explanatory theory and supporting evidence behind this view is what the majority of my articles are about. Thus, one way the truth is, in effect, revealed by a future nuclear war is by corroborating the idea that the whole world has been utterly deceived by Baghdad, Moscow and the powers of the East. In other words, upon the surprise attack, prevailing expectations will be utterly upset because everyone believed a total lie. Therefore, at least in a relative sense, the truth is revealed.
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"U.S. Sends Carrier to Enforce Iraqi Zone"
By Jonathan Wright
Friday October 3 4:09 PM EDT
WASHINGTON (Reuter) - The United States, reacting to Iranian
attacks on targets in Iraq this week, told the aircraft carrier
Nimitz to skip a port call in Singapore and hurry to the Gulf to
enforce a no-fly zone in southern Iraq, officials said Friday.
Defense Secretary William Cohen told the 73,000-ton carrier,
carrying 50 F-14A and F/A-18 combat aircraft, to move to the Gulf
"at best speed," a Navy spokesman said.
It will arrive by the middle of the month, four or five days
earlier than originally scheduled, the Pentagon added.
The Navy spokesman said the carrier group, which includes the
Nimitz and six other warships, would reinforce U.S. forces
enforcing the ban on flights over southern Iraq, where Iranian
planes this week hit the main Iranian opposition movement.
The force in the Gulf is already "significant in nature, but the
flexibility of the carrier battle group brings a nice extra asset
to bear," the spokesman added.
The Pentagon's Col. Richard Bridges said it was reasonable to
assume a connection with the Iranian raids Monday on bases of the
opposition Mujahideen Khalq.
One of the bases was inside the no-fly zone imposed by the United
States and its allies in 1992.
The original aim of the ban was to protect Iraqi Shi'ites from
the Iraqi air force and Washington has not previously taken a
strong stand on Iranian attacks on the Mujahideen, who have few
friends in the U.S. administration.
But Tuesday Defense Department spokesman Kenneth Bacon said the
United States had told Iran it could shoot down its planes if
they violate the ban on flights in the zone. White House
spokesman Mike McCurry reinforecd the warning Friday.
"We've made clear we will continue to vigorously enforce the no-
fly zones established to ensure compliance with relevant U.N.
Security Council resolutions," he said.
"We've got a very active presence in the region, and it is
related to our ability to carry out our responsibilities given to
us by the international community," he told reporters.
A White House official, explaining why McCurry issued the threat,
said the United States did not want Iraqi President Saddam
Hussein to use the Iranian action as a pretext.
"Saddam should not use incidents of Iranian action as an excuse
to prevent the international community from enforcing the U.N.
resolutions and the no-fly zone," he said.
"We have seen some instances where there have been some Iraqi
flights, some Iranian flights and the United States and the
coalition will enforce the no-fly zone," he added.
Analyst Judith Kipper, Middle East expert at the Center for
Strategic and International Studies in Washington, said she
thought it a case of the United States asserting a right to keep
outsiders out of Iraqi airspace.
"We are in charge of security in the Gulf. They (the Iranians)
can't fly into American-controlled territory with impunity," she
told Reuters.
Asked why the United States should send a carrier when it has so
much air power in the Gulf, she said: "You don't make a point by
what's sitting there, by what's routine."
The United States and its allies already have combat aircraft at
bases in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states to patrol the no-fly
zone for any air activity by the Iraqis.
Since the Iranian raids Monday, the planes have stepped up
flights, sources close to the force said Wednesday.
The Navy spokesman said the battle group consists of the Nimitz,
two cruisers, one destroyer, one frigate, one submarine and one
support ship. They will join five destroyers, three frigates and
two mine counter-measure ships with approximately 2,298 sailors
and Marines.
The last carrier in the Gulf region was the Kennedy, which left
Sept. 25. The Navy does not have enough carriers to maintain a
permanent carrier presence.
Bridges said the Nimitz was on its way to the Gulf anyway. It was
in the South China Sea, travelling southwestwards, national
security sources said.
"The Nimitz was scheduled to go to the Persian Gulf, with a port
call in Singapore. The port call was canceled and it will arrive
four or five days early," Bridges said.
The Mujahideen bases are mostly very close to the Iranian border,
making it simple for Iranian planes to make quick hit-and-run
raids without crossing paths with Western patrols.
Despite its long feud with the Islamic rulers in Iran, the United
States has never embraced the Mujahideen as a credible force,
especially after the opposition movement's Iraqi patrons invaded
Kuwait in 1990.
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"Iraq demands withdrawal of Turkish troops"
By Anthony Goodman, Reuters
UNITED NATIONS (October 2, 1997 6:04 p.m. EDT) - Iraqi Foreign
Minister Mohammed al-Sahaf demanded on Thursday the immediate
withdrawal of Turkish troops from northern Iraq, saying Baghdad
reserved the right to respond to "these acts of aggression."
He was referring, in a speech to the General Assembly, to week-
long Turkish air and land strikes against bases in Iraq used by
the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) to mount raids into Turkey in
its campaign for self-rule.
"We demand that Turkey withdraw immediately its invading forces
from our country and refrain from repeating such aggressive
military practices," al-Sahaf said.
"We hold Turkey fully responsible internationally for its acts of
aggression inside Iraqi territory and reserve our full right to
respond to these acts of aggression as well as our other
legitimate rights under international law, which results from
this responsibility."
Al-Sahaf also said Iran was taking advantage of an "illegal air
embargo imposed on northern and southern Iraq" by the United
States and Britain after the Gulf War to attack targets inside
Iraq.
Iranian planes last Monday bombed camps belonging to the main
Iranian opposition, the Iraqi-based Mujahideen Khalq.
Al-Sahaf said these "acts of aggression and the use of armed
force against Iraq" meant Security Council pledges to safeguard
his country's sovereignty and territorial integrity had become a
dead letter.
Referring to U.N. sanctions imposed after Iraq's invasion of
Kuwait, al-Sahaf said Baghdad had met all conditions for the
curbs to be lifted.
"Despite all the rumors, the truth is that Iraq no longer has any
banned weapons, equipment, machinery or materials," he said.
Shortly before al-Sahaf spoke, U.N. officials said a complaint
had been lodged with Iraq over three new incidents involving the
blocking of U.N. weapons inspectors -- a frequent occurrence over
the years.
The Iraqi minister made no mention of this, telling the Assembly:
"The United Nations is duty-bound to carry out a professional
review of the provisions of the blockade imposed on Iraq in order
to implement paragraph 22 of Security Council resolution 687 as a
first step towards lifting it completely."
He was referring to a provision in a 1991 resolution providing
for the lifting of sanctions once the council is satisfied Iraq
no longer possesses weapons of mass destruction or the means to
reacquire them.
Al-Sahaf said a program that went into effect last December
allowing Iraq to sell $2 billion worth of oil every six months to
buy badly needed food, medicine and other humanitarian supplies
was "a temporary and modest formula that meets only a fraction of
Iraq's needs."
But it still experienced many obstacles and delays, "which the
United States and Britain in particular try to impose with a view
to hindering its proper and effective implementation," he said.
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"Iraq blocks U.N. inspectors"
UNITED NATIONS (October 2, 1997 2:39 p.m. EDT) - Iraq blocked
U.N. inspectors searching for dangerous arms materials at three
sites during the past week, prompting a protest to Deputy Prime
Minister Tareq Aziz, U.N. officials said Thursday.
The incidents on Saturday, Monday and Wednesday were similar to
disputes last month and in June when Baghdad declared certain
facilities were too sensitive to undergo inspections. Two of the
sites in question were north of Baghdad and the third was in the
city, the officials said.
The U.N. inspection group of about 20 was withdrawn from the
perimeters of the sites and left Baghdad for New York Thursday,
as they were scheduled to do.
Richard Butler, the head of the U.N. Special Commission in charge
of ridding Iraq of weapons of mass destruction, had spoken and
written to Aziz, warning him that the incidents would be related
to the council in his mid-October report, the officials said.
The Security Council in June threatened further measures against
Iraq if it barred inspectors from sensitive sites in their quest
for materials relating to chemical, biological and ballistic
weapons.
Unless the inspectors are satisfied, stringent sanctions against
Iraq, particularly oil exports, cannot be lifted. Iraq has been
under U.N. sanctions since 1990 when it invaded Kuwait.
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"Syria, Iran building up forces near Iraq"
ANKARA (October 3, 1997 08:04 a.m. EDT) - Turkey's semi-official
Anatolian news agency said on Friday that neighbors Syria and
Iran had deployed troops near a Kurdish enclave in northern Iraq
in an apparent response to a Turkish military raid into Iraq.
It said Syrian armored units had built up near a triangle of
territory where Syria, Turkey and northern Iraq meet. It also
said Iranian troops had been deployed on Iran's border with
northern Iraq.
A spokesman for the London-based Iraqi opposition group Iraqi
National Congress confirmed the deployments.
"There is information that Syria ... is carrying out a deployment
only 30 kilometers (20 miles) from where our border meets
northern Iraq," Anatolian said.
"Iran continues to deploy troops along its border with northern
Iraq," the agency said. It gave no indication of the size of the
build up.
Turkish forces have been fighting Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK)
guerrillas in northern Iraq for almost two weeks.
Ankara often accuses Iran and Syria of aiding the PKK in its
fight for Kurdish self-rule in southeast Turkey. Damascus and
Tehran deny helping the rebels.
The INC spokesman said one Syrian armored division was positioned
near northern Iraq. He said an unknown number of Iranian troops,
including Revolutionary Guards, had taken up positions at three
points near the northern Iraqi border.
Around 15,000 troops, backed by air power, are taking part in the
Turkish raid, the second major strike into Iraq this year.
The PKK said fighting was still going on with Turkish troops
around the group's main camp in northern Iraq, which Ankara said
it had captured this week in a cross-border raid.
"The heaviest clashes in the region are continuing in the Zab
Valley," the rebels said in a statement obtained by Reuters.
It said 10 members of an Iraqi Kurdish militia allied to Turkey
had died in the clashes. The statement did not say who now
controlled the Zab camp, a network of deep mountain caves.
Turkey says it is winning its anti-rebel fight inside Turkey but
needs to finish off the PKK in northern Iraq. More than 26,000
people have died in the conflict.
Iraqi Foreign Minister Mohammed al-Sahaf on Thursday demanded the
immediate withdrawal of Turkish troops from northern Iraq. In a
speech to the U.N. General Assembly, he said Baghdad reserved the
right to respond to "these acts of aggression."
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"Crude Oil Futures Soar"
Friday, October 3, 1997
By Cliff Edwards
AP Business Writer
Crude oil futures soared Friday to an eight-month high after the
Clinton administration dispatched an aircraft carrier to the
Persian Gulf following violations of an Iraqi no-fly zone. The
move heightened tensions in a region that supplies a third of the
world's oil.
On other exchanges, precious metals rose sharply as the
possibility of Middle Eastern conflict caused investors to
scramble to safe investments. Corn and soybeans jumped as farmers
held on to the fall crop amid strong worldwide demand.
Crude futures had the biggest one-day gain since March 18 after
the Defense Department said the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz would
skip a port of call in Singapore and steam directly to the
Persian Gulf, arriving within a week to help enforce a no-fly
zone in southern Iraq. Heating oil and unleaded gasoline futures
also jumped.
Iran on Monday violated the no-fly zone while attacking rebels
who took refuge across the border in Iraq. The move heightened
tensions with Iraq, which had a long war with Iran in the 1980s.
In northern Iraq, Turkish forces also were fighting rebels.
``It's a fairly crowded war party over there, and the fact that
the U.S. is now potentially getting involved makes the
possibility of escalations of tensions that much greater,'' said
energy analyst Ed Kevelson at Paribas Futures Inc. ``With this
much uncertainty about what might happen over the weekend, no one
wanted to go home unprotected.''
Crude oil for November delivery on the New York Mercantile
Exchange rose 99 cents to $22.76 a barrel, the highest since Feb.
19. November unleaded gasoline jumped 1.56 cents to 62.99 cents a
gallon; November heating oil rose 2.21 cents to 62.01 cents a
gallon. Natural gas for November delivery rose 1.2 cents to
$3.125 per 1,000 cubic feet.
The energy gains continued a rally from Thursday, when Iraq
blocked United Nations weapons inspectors from entering suspected
illegal weapons sites, prompting threats of retaliation such as a
halt to Iraqi oil exports.
Gold and silver futures also rose sharply on the New York
Mercantile Exchange as investors sought a safe haven for their
money in the event of military conflict.
Precious metals tend to hold their value during times of military
or political upheaval. The rally on that market came despite
government reports showing inflation appears to remain in check,
reducing the need for the metals as an inflationary hedge.
December gold rose $3.40 to $336.90 a troy ounce; December silver
jumped 13.30 cents to $5.303 an ounce.
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BBC Summary of World Broadcasts
September 3, 1997, Wednesday
"Opposition radio reports more Iraqi
government troop movements in north"
Source: Voice of Rebellious Iraq in Arabic 1215 gmt 1 Sep 97
Text of report by Supreme Assembly of the Islamic Revolution
in Iraq, SAIRI, radio on 1st September
In recent days, there has been an escalation of the hectic
movements of the Saddam regime's armed forces along the contact
lines with the liberated Iraqi Kurdistan areas. In addition to
the reinforcements in the areas where the 5th Army Corps is
deployed, especially in the Kuwayr and Khush Tappah areas and
around the Makhmur area, military reinforcements from the 5th
Army Corps were sent to the areas located between Aski Kalak on
the Khazir River and Mosul. Movements and reinforcements by the
2nd Army Corps forces were also witnessed on the Tuz Khurmatu-
Kifri-Klar axis and the Khanaqin district. Other movements were
also monitored in the 1st Army Corps sector, close to Chamchamal.
Meanwhile, the organizations affiliated with the authority
party and their groups of gunmen in the Kirkuk, Diyala and Mosul
Governorates were put on maximum alert. The state of alert
covered the networks of the authority party members and security
personnel in the Dohuk, Arbil and Sulaymaniyah Governorates.
These networks were activated and secretly reinforced over the
past few months. These movements began last July. Hundreds of
secret security agents posing as members of tour groups organized
by travel agents to Dohuk and Irbin were sent. These movements
coincided with staged Kurdish demonstrations in Baghdad, which
marched towards the UN offices demanding the return of the regime
to Kurdistan and urging pro-regime propaganda activities by the
Kurdish parties affiliated with the regime and the so-called
autonomous region institutions.
The authority agencies and personnel are spreading rumours
about an imminent invasion by the regime troops of the Kurdistan
region and the return of the Saddam regime and agencies to it,
recalling the 31st August 1996 events when the Arbil Governorate
was invaded by the Saddam regime.
Meanwhile, we have received information from various sources
about the intention of the Saddamist repressive agencies to
launch strikes or to carry out more explosions and other
terrorist acts. The prevailing atmosphere among the masses
throughout liberated Kurdistan is one of anxiety, fear and
apprehension as they observe with concern the movements of the
regime's troops, agents and agencies. According to other
information, many families are preparing for leaving the cities
and areas that, according to rumours, will be attacked by the
Saddam regime's troops within days.
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BBC Summary of World Broadcasts
August 28, 1997, Thursday
"Opposition cites 'military experts'
on troop movements on borders"
Source: 'Al-Majd', Amman, in Arabic 25 Aug 97
Text of report by Jordanian weekly 'Al-Majd' on 25th August
Citing Iraqi military experts, Iraqi opposition sources said
that over the past four days Iraq has begun to mobilize its
troops along the Iraqi-Saudi, Iraqi-Kuwaiti and Iraqi-Syrian
borders. The Iraqi experts said that there was unusual movement
of military vehicles between Iraqi governorates. In addition to
this, missile batteries and anti-aircraft artillery were deployed
throughout the Iraqi territory adjacent to the common borders
with Syria.
The Iraqi opposition sources said that these movements and the
deployment of troops along the Saudi and Kuwaiti borders were out
of a fear that US troops would enter Iraq if Iraqi forces
supported the Syrian army in case of a military confrontation
with Israel.
The Iraqi newspaper 'Babil', which is run by Iraqi President
Saddam Husayn's son, Udayy, called - in its 23rd August issue -
for establishing a military alliance between Syria and Iraq in
response to the growing military alliance between Turkey and
Israel.
'Babil' also welcomed the strengthening of trade relations
between Damascus and Baghdad, and urged them to resume diplomatic
relations as soon as possible.
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BBC Summary of World Broadcasts
August 22, 1997, Friday
"Opposition group comments on recent
troop movements, appointments"
Source: 'Al-Hayat', London, in Arabic 21 Aug 97
Excerpt from report by London-based newspaper
'Al-Hayat' on 21st August
London: Reports circulated by an Iraqi opposition organization
yesterday said that Baghdad has been massing troops in the Basra
and Nasiriyah governorates in southern Iraq and that President
Saddam Husayn has appointed his cousin Ali Hasan al-Majid as
military governor of the two governorates.
The statement issued by (Muhammad Baqir al-Hakim's) Supreme
Assembly for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq SAIRIā, of which 'Al-
Hayat'has received a copy, said that the concentration of troops
includes Mechanized Division 15 under the command of Staff Brig-
Gen Hikmat Kazim Salman near Zubayr Bridge on the Sahah Sa'd-
Zubayr road, the deployment of the 6th Armoured Division which
includes an infantry brigade (in Basra's Khuyut area) under the
command of Staff Lt-Col Ali Husayn Jasim, the 30th Armoured
Brigade in the Zurayji area (in Basra governorate), an infantry
brigade in the Nashwah area, an infantry brigade in Basra-
Shu'aybah, the 32nd Brigade in Rumaylah, a tank battalion
belonging to the brigade and an armoured brigade in Basra-
Shu'aybah, a tank battalion on the Basra-Nasiriyah road, another
tank battalion in Shu'aybah, and an artillery brigade in
Rumaylah. The statement also spoke of an infantry division being
deployed in Nasiriyah.
There were also reports of new appointments in Nasiriyah and
Basra governorates involving "some people who took part in the
invasion of Kuwait, such as the appointment of Ali Hasan al-Majid
as military governor and (ruling) Ba'th Party official in Basra
and Nasiriyah, the appointment of former Chief of Staff Iyad
Futayh al-Rawi as governor of Nasiriyah, and the appointment of
Hashim Hasan al-Majid, Ali Hasan al-Majid's brother, as governor
of Basra" . The statement added that carriers were seen
transporting tanks and heading towards southern Iraq. It is not
ruled out that the troop concentration might be in connection
with an attack being planned by President Saddam Husayn...
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Agence France Presse
September 11, 1997
"Iraq calls for jihad against Israel,
slams US peace efforts"
Iraq urged Arab states on Thursday to mount a jihad, or
Moslem holy war, against Israel and to reject a US-sponsored
peace process which it says is biased toward the Jewish state.
"All the signs and historical facts show that the Arabs have
no choice but to pursue the jihad against the (Israeli)
occupier," said Ath-Thawra, organ of the ruling Baath Party.
It said US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright's maiden tour
of the Middle East that started in Israel on Wednesday was aimed
solely at "guaranteeing the security of the (Israeli) aggressor
which practises terrorism."
The peace process sponsored by Washington is "totally partial"
toward Israel, it charged, adding that the US administration
would "never accept the slightest pressure on the Zionist
entity."
It slammed "Arab heads of state who think they can settle
matters by negotiating with the enemy."
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