Syria warned not to prove 'safe haven' for Saddam

Washington - Syria must not provide a safe haven to deposed Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein or members of his regime, US Secretary of State Colin Powell warned today.

Mr Powell, considered one of the more moderate voices in the Washington administration, told BBC 1's Breakfast with Frost programme: "Syria has been a concern for a long period of time.

"We have designated Syria for years as a state that sponsors terrorism, and we have discussed this with the Syrians on many occasions.

"We are concerned that materials have flowed through Syria to the Iraqi regime over the years. We are making this point clearly and in a very direct manner to the Syrians.

"We hope the Syrians will respond accordingly."

Mr Powell added: "Also, we think it would be very unwise ... if suddenly Syria suddenly becomes a haven for all these people who should be brought to justice who are trying to get out of Baghdad.

"It seems to me that Syria would not find it in its interests ... (if) Syria would become a place of haven for people who should be subject to the justice of the Iraqi people."

US forces stopped a bus yesterday near the Syrian border that was carrying 59 men with $630,000 in $100 bills and a letter offering a reward for killing American soldiers.

The killing of a US Marine at a checkpoint overnight by a man with a Syrian identity card was likely to fuel the bitterness between Washington and Damascus.

The Marine, from the First Marine Expeditionary Force, was guarding a checkpoint at a medical facility when two men approached him. One man shot the Marine and US soldiers returned fire killing the man with Syrian ID. The other attacker fled.

US helicopters appeared in the skies over Baghdad looking for looters and in Basra local police officers appeared on the street again.

Iraqi police are working with US Marines to set up joint patrols in the Iraqi capital, which will start in a day or two.

People felt secure enough to come out of their homes and drive around, causing the late morning traffic jams so common to Baghdad life. Buses started running in the centre of town.

However, looting flared on the western outskirts of the capital, and a plume of black smoke streaked up into the sky. Whole families, including women and children, used donkey carts to haul off toilets, sinks and bathtubs from a warehouse in the Abu Ghreib district.

Looters came out of sportswear shops wearing green track suits — the colour of Iraq's national team — and brand new white sneakers.

The Agriculture Ministry and other government installations were also ransacked, while an institute of military studies on the city's main street, Palestine Street, was pillaged and gutted by fire, possible an arson attack.

Although public transport resumed, some double-decker buses were taken over by looters to ferry their booty back home.

US troops set up barricades to search vehicles and passengers coming in and out of the western part of the city. They conducted body searches and inspected vehicles, aggravating the traffic congestion. -- Independent News

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