Baghdad: Iraq warned of "martyrdom" and other unconventional attacks on April 4
against US troops who it said were "isolated" at Saddam International Airport on the
outskirts of the capital.
"I mean some kind of martyrdom, and there are very new ways which we are going to
carry out," said Information Minister Mohammad Said al-Sahhaf.
Sahhaf recalled the battle of Dien Bien Phu, a1954 battle, which changed the course
of France's war in Vietnam and led to the surrender and defeat of the French.
"Tonight we will carry out something that is not conventional against them, not
military. It will be a great example to them," he told a press conference.
However, the minister, whose country has insisted it does not have weapons of mass
destruction, ruled out the use of unconventional weapons in reply to a journalist's
question.
"Unless they surrender quickly, I don't think there's any chance that they will
survive," he said, referring to the US forces. "We consider it an isolated island ..
They are completely surrounded."
"In a joint effort between Iraqi people, Saddam's fidayeen (militia) and
tribesmen ... we have the determination to keep them in a small island, another Dien
Bien Phu," he
said.
Agencies
