BAGHDAD, Iraq - United Nations weapons inspectors returned to Iraq yesterday for the first time in nearly four years, backed by the threat of force and the authority to search anywhere, anytime for chemical, biological and nuclear weapons - even in the lavish palaces of President Saddam Hussein.
Chief U.N. weapons inspector Hans Blix and Mohamed el Baradei, director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, immediately sought to calm fears that their arrival in Baghdad brought the region closer to war.
"We have come here for one single reason, and that is the world wants to have assurance that there are no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq," Blix said shortly after the inspectors landed at Saddam Hussein International Airport.
Credible inspections are "in the interests of Iraq and the interests of the world," Blix said.
As Blix and his crew were preparing yesterday for high-tech equipment to be unloaded from their cargo jet in Baghdad, Iraqi ground forces and U.S. fighter jets were firing at each other in the so-called no-fly zone over the northern part of the country.
The Bush administration has said it will give arms inspections a chance, but that Iraqi firing at U.S. warplanes patrolling the no-fly zone might be considered a "material breach" of the U.N. resolution - and if confirmed by the Security Council, could trigger an attack. The resolution bars "hostile acts" toward any U.N. representative or member state seeking to uphold the world body's efforts to contain Iraqi aggression.
White House officials said yesterday that U.S. warplanes would continue to fire back when targeted by Iraqi forces, but that the Bush administration was not ready to take the matter to the Security Council.
"I would emphasize that this goes to showing his intention to comply and cooperate," said White House spokesman Scott McClellan. "In the meantime, our aircraft will respond when fired upon.
The United States has threatened to attack Iraq if it does not cooperate with the U.N. weapons inspectors, who are operating under a tough new Security Council resolution that gives Baghdad "a final opportunity" to disarm and warns of serious consequences if it does not.
"Our view is zero tolerance, that Saddam Hussein does not need to be playing games at this point. No cat and mouse. It is time for him to comply and cooperate and disarm," McClellan said.
Diplomats said the tough talk from the White House, while distressing to Security Council allies, might be a way of keeping pressure on Baghdad while inspections begin.
Retaliatory strikes on Iraqi military installations might also help U.S. and British forces destroy Baghdad's defense capabilities before an all-out war.
The first test of Iraq's intentions could come as early as Nov. 27, when Blix said preliminary checks are scheduled to begin.
Perhaps the more important date is Dec. 8, when Iraq is to submit a list of any banned weapons programs. The second deadline appears to be a conflict waiting to happen, because Iraq insists that it has no such programs.
Both the United States and Iraq have stoked the uncertainty surrounding the inspections, doing all they can to keep the other guessing.
Iraq's parliament, though relatively powerless, made a show of voting against accepting the return of weapons inspectors just one day before Hussein's foreign minister notified U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan that Iraq would abide by the resolution.
Hussein's deputy, Izzat Ibrahim, told the official Iraqi News Agency yesterday that Iraq will work with inspectors to protect its people from an American attack but will fight "if war is imposed on us."
The Iraqi newspaper Babil, operated by Hussein's oldest son, Uday, said in an editorial yesterday that "our country is free of weapons of mass destruction. ... Those unjust Americans, as well as others, should leave the Security Council alone and end the unjust siege imposed on us."
The Iraqi newspaper Al Thawra, mouthpiece of the president's ruling Baath party, said in a front-page editorial that the previous U.N. inspection team was "an American organization [sent] to spy on Iraq." It added that it hoped the new teams did not include spies for the United States.
"The authority given to the inspectors is so high I just don't see how they will function," said Wamidh Nadhmi, a political science professor at Baghdad University. "Perhaps it is intended this way - that any clash between the two sides might give the U.S. administration a pretext for its war aims."
While Blix was trying to calm tensions in the region, he was struggling against a widespread feeling that no matter what the inspectors find, the United States is committed to going after Hussein.
"From when the countdown began, Iraq was going to be affected," said Farid Khazen, a political science professor at American University in Beirut, Lebanon. "At best, the regime will be besieged. At worst, the regime will be removed."
Blix, a 74-year-old Swede, was called out of retirement to head the inspection teams. He has tried to win the confidence of both sides, saying that while he cannot guarantee that there won't be any spies on his team, he would remove them if any are discovered. He has also said that he will take a hard line with Baghdad.
"The question of war and peace remains first of all in the hands of Iraq, the Security Council and the members of the Security Council," Blix said Sunday in Cyprus, where he and el Baradei joined about two dozen other members of the advance team before heading on to Baghdad.
Annan had an even more direct assessment of Baghdad's responsibility.
"I urge President Saddam Hussein to comply fully with the council's demands, for the sake of his people, regional security and world order," he said.
Eventually more than 220 inspectors from 49 countries will be deployed, although how many at any one time would vary depending on what is required. At least 30 inspectors are American, the largest nationality represented, and at least five are women. At least six members of the group are Arabs, and el Baradei, the International Atomic Energy Agency chief, is Egyptian.
Chief U.N. weapons inspector Hans Blix and Mohamed el Baradei, director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, immediately sought to calm fears that their arrival in Baghdad brought the region closer to war.
"We have come here for one single reason, and that is the world wants to have assurance that there are no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq," Blix said shortly after the inspectors landed at Saddam Hussein International Airport.
Credible inspections are "in the interests of Iraq and the interests of the world," Blix said.
As Blix and his crew were preparing yesterday for high-tech equipment to be unloaded from their cargo jet in Baghdad, Iraqi ground forces and U.S. fighter jets were firing at each other in the so-called no-fly zone over the northern part of the country.
The Bush administration has said it will give arms inspections a chance, but that Iraqi firing at U.S. warplanes patrolling the no-fly zone might be considered a "material breach" of the U.N. resolution - and if confirmed by the Security Council, could trigger an attack. The resolution bars "hostile acts" toward any U.N. representative or member state seeking to uphold the world body's efforts to contain Iraqi aggression.
White House officials said yesterday that U.S. warplanes would continue to fire back when targeted by Iraqi forces, but that the Bush administration was not ready to take the matter to the Security Council.
"I would emphasize that this goes to showing his intention to comply and cooperate," said White House spokesman Scott McClellan. "In the meantime, our aircraft will respond when fired upon.
The United States has threatened to attack Iraq if it does not cooperate with the U.N. weapons inspectors, who are operating under a tough new Security Council resolution that gives Baghdad "a final opportunity" to disarm and warns of serious consequences if it does not.
"Our view is zero tolerance, that Saddam Hussein does not need to be playing games at this point. No cat and mouse. It is time for him to comply and cooperate and disarm," McClellan said.
Diplomats said the tough talk from the White House, while distressing to Security Council allies, might be a way of keeping pressure on Baghdad while inspections begin.
Retaliatory strikes on Iraqi military installations might also help U.S. and British forces destroy Baghdad's defense capabilities before an all-out war.
The first test of Iraq's intentions could come as early as Nov. 27, when Blix said preliminary checks are scheduled to begin.
Perhaps the more important date is Dec. 8, when Iraq is to submit a list of any banned weapons programs. The second deadline appears to be a conflict waiting to happen, because Iraq insists that it has no such programs.
Both the United States and Iraq have stoked the uncertainty surrounding the inspections, doing all they can to keep the other guessing.
Iraq's parliament, though relatively powerless, made a show of voting against accepting the return of weapons inspectors just one day before Hussein's foreign minister notified U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan that Iraq would abide by the resolution.
Hussein's deputy, Izzat Ibrahim, told the official Iraqi News Agency yesterday that Iraq will work with inspectors to protect its people from an American attack but will fight "if war is imposed on us."
The Iraqi newspaper Babil, operated by Hussein's oldest son, Uday, said in an editorial yesterday that "our country is free of weapons of mass destruction. ... Those unjust Americans, as well as others, should leave the Security Council alone and end the unjust siege imposed on us."
The Iraqi newspaper Al Thawra, mouthpiece of the president's ruling Baath party, said in a front-page editorial that the previous U.N. inspection team was "an American organization [sent] to spy on Iraq." It added that it hoped the new teams did not include spies for the United States.
"The authority given to the inspectors is so high I just don't see how they will function," said Wamidh Nadhmi, a political science professor at Baghdad University. "Perhaps it is intended this way - that any clash between the two sides might give the U.S. administration a pretext for its war aims."
While Blix was trying to calm tensions in the region, he was struggling against a widespread feeling that no matter what the inspectors find, the United States is committed to going after Hussein.
"From when the countdown began, Iraq was going to be affected," said Farid Khazen, a political science professor at American University in Beirut, Lebanon. "At best, the regime will be besieged. At worst, the regime will be removed."
Blix, a 74-year-old Swede, was called out of retirement to head the inspection teams. He has tried to win the confidence of both sides, saying that while he cannot guarantee that there won't be any spies on his team, he would remove them if any are discovered. He has also said that he will take a hard line with Baghdad.
"The question of war and peace remains first of all in the hands of Iraq, the Security Council and the members of the Security Council," Blix said Sunday in Cyprus, where he and el Baradei joined about two dozen other members of the advance team before heading on to Baghdad.
Annan had an even more direct assessment of Baghdad's responsibility.
"I urge President Saddam Hussein to comply fully with the council's demands, for the sake of his people, regional security and world order," he said.
Eventually more than 220 inspectors from 49 countries will be deployed, although how many at any one time would vary depending on what is required. At least 30 inspectors are American, the largest nationality represented, and at least five are women. At least six members of the group are Arabs, and el Baradei, the International Atomic Energy Agency chief, is Egyptian.