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Politics : Stockman Scott's Political Debate Porch -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: stockman_scott who wrote (25896)	8/21/2003 8:56:11 AM
From: TigerPaw	Respond to of 89467

Does anyone want to invest in Iraq now? Does anyone want to put his money on a future "democracy" in Iraq? <font color=brown> World Bank, IMF Pull Staff Out of Iraq By EDITH M. LEDERER Associated Press Writer <font color=purple> UNITED NATIONS (AP)--The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund pulled their staff out of Iraq on Wednesday after the bombing of the U.N. headquarters in Baghdad, which killed 20 people including the top U.N. envoy. The IMF and World Bank are key players in efforts by the U.S.-led coalition to rebuild Iraq's devastated economy. The two are expected to provide billions of dollars in loans to help restart the economy and banking system. Both had sent assessment teams to Iraq to start the process. Five IMF staffers were in the U.N. building in Baghdad at the time of the explosion. Four are now in Amman, Jordan, after receiving treatment for minor injuries, IMF spokesman David Hawley said, in Washington. ``The fifth staff member and a security consultant working for the fund are in good care and receiving treatment in hospitals'' in Baghdad, he said. The World Bank was in the process of moving 14 staff members to Jordan, spokesman Damian Milverton said. He said one bank employee was missing after the bombing. ``This does not signal an end to our involvement with Iraq,'' Milverton said. ``We will continue to assess Iraq's reconstruction needs from offices outside Iraq for the moment.'' The World Bank staff started arriving in May. The IMF staff members were on an assessment mission in Iraq. In Washington, a Treasury Department official described the relocation of IMF and World Bank personnel as temporary and said that both agencies ``are committed to their work'' in helping with the reconstruction of Iraq. ``No one is walking away from their commitments,'' said Treasury Department spokesman Tony Fratto. Bush administration officials, Fratto said, believed the bombing would not delay a donor's conference, scheduled for late October, in which the United States hopes to obtain financial commitments to the rebuilding effort from a number of countries. The bomb killed top U.N. envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello and at least 19 others, and wounded at least 100 people. Ahmad Chalabi, a member of the U.S.-picked interim Iraqi government, said the death toll was expected to rise because people are still trapped in the rubble. U.N. spokesman Fred Eckhard said only two people among the 300 or so United Nations international staffers in Baghdad had decided to leave the country. ``I think the staff is pretty committed to staying on the job,'' he said. ``The leadership is reassessing security.'' statesman.com <font color=black> TP