Iraq attempted to sway arms inspector

[thedrifter]

Iraq attempted to sway arms inspector
By Inigo Gilmore
LONDON SUNDAY TELEGRAPH


BAGHDAD ? Iraq's intelligence services bought gold jewelry that they planned to give to the wife and daughter of Scott Ritter, the former U.N. weapons inspector, as part of a clandestine project to encourage him to work closely with Saddam Hussein's regime, according to documents discovered in Baghdad.
The documents, which were found in the bombed headquarters of Iraq's intelligence services, state that presents were approved in an attempt to develop "strong relations with [Mr. Ritter?s family] that affect positively on our relations with him."
The documents state that the gifts should be offered through an intermediary, who was named as Shakir al-Khafaji, an Iraqi-American businessman and close associate of Mr. Ritter's.
The documents, which were signed by the director general of Iraqi intelligence, purport to reveal close links between Mr. al-Khafaji and Iraqi intelligence, and suggest that the regime was ready to make available substantial funds.
The papers referring to the "Scott Ritter Project" were found in a file marked "Hosting in hotels 1997-2000," which held details of Iraqi intelligence guests who had traveled to Baghdad.
Mr. Ritter formed a partnership with Mr. al-Khafaji to finance the 2001 film "In Shifting Sands," which attempted to prove that Iraq did not have weapons of mass destruction.
Mr. Ritter said the Iraqis had tried more than once to compromise the documentary.
He confirmed that officials had offered a gold bracelet for his wife and had volunteered to finance the film, either directly or through a French oil company.
Mr. Ritter said he rebuffed each attempt and filed reports on the approaches to the FBI. He also filed reports with the U.S. Treasury Department when he was raising money for "In Shifting Sands."
"Be careful how you interpret those documents," he said. "I would hate to read that I had taken Iraqi money, which I did not.
"Perhaps you can find documents relating to the meeting I eventually had with Tariq Aziz, in which I told him I would take no money, and he replied, 'We respect you because you do not have your hand out,' " Mr. Ritter said.
"I know that the Iraqis had no influence whatsoever on making this film, and I also know that Shakir al-Khafaji had no editorial input," he added.
Mr. al-Khafaji, who is from a prominent Iraqi family but has lived in the United States for nearly 30 years, insisted that the documents proved only that Iraqi intelligence agents were corrupt.


Sempers,

Roger