This Day In Iraqi History – Dec 19

1983 Reagan Special Envoy to Middle East Rumsfeld arrived in Baghdad to try

to improve US-Iraq relations

1998 Op Desert Fox by Pres Clinton to punish Iraq for ending cooperation with UN weapons

            inspectors ended Iraq gave up rebuilding its WMD programs as a result

2001 Gen Franks made 3^rd presentation to Rumsfeld of revised Iraq war plan

2002 Blix and El Baradei told Security Council about initial weapons inspections Blix

            said Iraq had not provided much new info

2002 Blix said 1 main problem was declared amounts of WMD produced vs what Iraq

            could’ve produced and 2 secret destruction of stocks

2002 Iraq’s claims and potential WMD production didn't match and had no proof of its

            secret destruction of stocks

2002 Sec of State Powell said Iraq in “material breach” of disarmament obligations

            with its weapons declaration to UN

2002 State Dept paper accused Iraq of active WMD programs rebuilding nuke

            program Not disclosing them to UN

2002 UK cabinet told Blair govt would declare Iraq in material breach of UN

            Resolution 1441 in Jan because of its arms declaration

2002 France said it was up to inspectors not US to determine whether Iraq was

            hiding WMD

2002 Russia criticized US for not providing evidence to Security Council and

            inspectors of Iraqi violations during inspections

2002 CNN/Time poll 63% of US respondents believed US war with Iraq was

            inevitable

2002 Gen Franks briefed Bush again on war plans Went over what could go wrong and

            lessons from war game

2004 Suicide bomber in Karbala killed 14 and wounded 30 and car bomb in Najaf killed

            48 wounded 90

2004 30 insurgents attacked members of Election Commission on Haifa St Baghdad

            Dragged them from car and shot them in street

2005 Adnan al-Dulaimi of Iraqi Accordance Front called for revote at polling stations

            where violations were registered

2005 Salah al-Mutlaq of National Dialogue Front claimed there was voter fraud

2005 US Amb Khalizad said couldn’t have sectarian Badr member run Interior Ministry

2006 NSC meeting Bush told Maliki agreed to new Baghdad security plan

2008 Talabani proposed reforms to PUK at politburo meeting to address factionalism

2011 Arrest warrant for VP Hashemi issued forcing him into exile

2011 3 of Hashemi’s guards appeared on TV saying they were involved in terrorist

            attacks

2012 Maliki ordered arrest of Finance Min Issawi’s bodyguards

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