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Politics : The Iraq War And Beyond -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Ed Huang who wrote (381)	8/19/2003 11:39:07 AM
From: James Calladine	Respond to of 9018

'Suicide' Truck Bomb Shatters U.N. Baghdad HQ Tue August 19, 2003 11:15 AM ET By Michael Georgy and Luke Baker BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A massive truck bomb devastated the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad on Tuesday, killing at least 10 people and wounding scores, officials said. It may have been a suicide attack, a top U.S. official said. Among many badly hurt and still trapped under the rubble was Secretary-General Kofi Annan's special representative to Iraq, Sergio Vieira de Mello. A U.N. official said his wrecked office appeared to have been the target of the unidentified bombers. A U.S. army officer at the scene said at least 10 people were killed. Several dead and wounded were still trapped. "It is a tragedy...A setback politically for the U.N. mission," chief U.N. spokesman Fred Eckhard said of the almost unprecedented attack on a civilian United Nations operation. The world body vowed not to retreat from Baghdad, however. Last week, the Security Council set aside bitter differences over the U.S. invasion to topple Saddam Hussein and set up a new mission to coordinate its mainly humanitarian effort in Iraq. Clouds of black smoke drifted above, ruffling the sky blue U.N. flag in the late afternoon air. There was no claim of responsibility, just as there was none two weeks ago when a truck bomb shattered the Jordanian embassy in Baghdad, killing 17 people. The U.S. occupation forces say Muslim militants or diehard supporters of Saddam Hussein might have set that bomb -- on a "soft target" to destabilize American rule in Iraq. One U.N. ambassador called Tuesday's attack an "abominable act of terrorism" that demanded a show of strength in response. "The explosion was caused by a massive truck bomb," Bernard Kerik, the senior U.S. police official in Baghdad, said. "We have evidence to suggest it could have been a suicide attack." Like the Jordanian embassy, the U.N. compound at the Canal Hotel would have made a relatively soft target compared to the heavily fortified and defended U.S. military posts around Iraq. CHIEF TRAPPED, MANY MISSING The complex houses numerous U.N. agencies, employing about 300 staff. It was the base for weapons inspectors during the long hunt for Saddam's alleged weapons of mass destruction. "Suddenly there was an explosion and everything fell down," said Fouad Victor, a U.N. employee who was inside when the blast struck at about 4:30 p.m. Television pictures from inside the building showed a man addressing a news conference when it went dark at the sound of a huge explosion. Later, television showed a murky scene of dust and frightened people with bloodied faces seeking to flee. Bleeding workers were led away by U.S. soldiers -- the U.N. itself has no military presence in Baghdad. One British man, covered in blood, walked out of the compound with a briefcase, head swathed in bandages. Some of the wounded were ferried away on U.S. helicopters. U.N. officials at the scene said that rescue workers were struggling to free Vieira de Mello, a 55-year-old Brazilian career diplomat, from the ruins. "The explosion took out his office," a U.N. spokesman said. The United Nations is playing a limited role in postwar Iraq, with the U.S.-led invasion forces assuming military and civilian control of the country. The U.N.'s main objectives have been the provision of humanitarian aid. After splits with allies like France, Russia and Germany over the war, Washington has shown little haste in seeking a bigger part for the United Nations in Iraq, although it would like more countries to share the burden of running the country. President Bush, who has come under fire for failing to stem violence since the invasion of Iraq, had no immediate comment. He cut short a golf outing on Tuesday and headed back to his ranch to be briefed. SADDAM DEPUTY CAPTURED Just hours earlier, U.S. and Kurdish officials in Iraq announced the detention overnight of Saddam's vice president, Taha Yassin Ramadan, in Mosul, the Iraqi city where the fugitive dictator's sons were cornered and killed last month. The seizure by Kurdish forces of such a high-profile member of Saddam's inner circle will fuel speculation that U.S. forces are still hot on the trail of the ousted Iraqi leader himself. Ramadan, a ruthless and long-serving lieutenant who once suggested Bush fight a duel with Saddam, may have been betrayed by an informant in Mosul -- like Saddam's sons Uday and Qusay -- or captured after a tip-off. "I'm really pleased that we've captured the vice president. Slowly but surely we'll find who we need to find," Bush said. As vice president, Ramadan launched suicide bombers against American forces during the invasion that toppled the regime. He was No. 20 on the U.S. list of the 55 most wanted Iraqis and the 10 of diamonds in a deck of cards issued to U.S. troops. reuters.com