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'Clearly containment hasn't worked . . . Removal of Saddam is only option'

AJCONGRESS CALLS FOR MORE EFFECTIVE IMPLEMENTATION OF
IRAQ LIBERATION ACT INCLUDING USE OF AIR POWER IN
SUPPORT OF OPPOSITION FORCES WITHIN IRAQ

(July 13, 1999) Noting that intervention by an American military force can be decisive even when it amounts to less than a total military engagement -- as was demonstrated recently in Kosovo -- the American Jewish Congress today called on the United States to provide military and financial assistance to the opponents of Saddam Hussein to remove him and his government from power.

The policy was urged by AJCongress' high-level Commission on International Affairs, which is chaired by former New York Congressman Stephen J. Solarz. The Commission called on the Clinton Administration to fully implement the Iraq Liberation Act (ILA), passed last year by Congress, which requires the United States to arm the insurgents and allows providing air power in support of a military uprising.

"The Commission's call for action reflects its concern over the enormous and growing threat presented by Saddam to the region, including Israel, and the West, with his development of weapons of mass destruction," declared Solarz. "The dangers have increased given the removal of the UNSCOM (United Nations) weapons inspectors from Iraq. Saddam now has a free hand to produce nuclear, chemical and biological weapons."

The AJCongress group expressed grave misgivings over the failure of the United States thus far to carry out the actions mandated by the ILA: "Clearly containment hasn't worked. Removal is the only option. There can be no stability in the area if Saddam remains in power and his weapons program continues and expands."

AJCongress President Jack Rosen, in announcing the Commission recommendations along with Solarz, said that following the United States' successful use of air power against Slobodan Milosevic, it was time to consider appropriate military options against Saddam. "President Clinton has proven that as Commander-in-Chief, he is willing to use this country's power for the pursuit of American goals. We must confront the fact that some measure of military involvement, if only giving support to opposition forces, may be the only way to remove the lethal danger Saddam represents."

The Commission expressed concern that the American public "seems distressingly unaware of the danger Saddam presents, especially given the absence of the weapons inspectors."

A possible strategy, the Commission declared, would call for insurgents, operating from areas controlled by American air power in the north and south of Iran, to link up with anti-Saddam elements in the rest of the country. "Because Saddam lacks the support of his people," the group noted, "it is not unlikely that important units of the Iraqi military, when confronted with a sizable force, will defect to the other side."

"Such a strategy would require the cooperation of neighboring states in the form of providing arms and air support to the resistance forces. But a firm American commitment to a policy designed to bring down the Ba'athist regime in Baghdad would doubtless provide a powerful incentive for this cooperation. In the final analysis, those states whose cooperation would be required for this purpose have even more to fear from Saddam than do we," the Commission maintained.

The AJCongress Commission acknowledged that there are no guarantees that the strategy would work. However, it maintained that it is preferable to the alternatives which haven't worked, such as sanctions, a coup, or the waging of a second Gulf War. "Nothing is risk free. But the risk of leaving Saddam in power is greater than the alternative of taking action to remove him," the group said.

The Commission adopted its policy following a presentation by Dr. Laurie Mylroie, Vice President of "Information for Democracy," a non-profit organization dealing with democracy in the Middle East, with a particular interest in Iraq. She is the author of the best seller, Saddam Hussein and the Crisis in the Gulf (1990) and is now at work on a sequel, Study of Revenge: The Unfinished War of Saddam Hussein. In addition, she is publisher of Iraq News, an on-line e-mail newsletter.

The American Jewish Congress, founded in 1918 by Rabbi Stephen S. Wise, Justice Louis D. Brandeis and other distinguished Jews, specializes in combatting all forms of bigotry through law and legislation. Considered the legal voice of the American Jewish Community, it works to safeguard Jewish interests, protect basic freedoms enshrined in the American Bill of Rights and to advance the security of Israel.