U.S. Accuses Iraq of Sabotaging Convoys of Aid Destined for Kurds

The United States accused Iraq on Friday of bombing U.N. relief convoys in northern Iraq and warned Baghdad not to attack Kurds.

The Iraqi military has been attempting to impede relief convoys traveling from Turkey into Iraqi regions inhabited by the Kurds, said Assistant Secretary of State Edward P. Djerejian.

“Recently, Iraqi interference has taken on a particularly disturbing dimension,” he said. “There has been over the last month a pattern of sabotage against relief convoy vehicles. This week, at least 15 trucks were damaged by bombs, putting the Turkish drivers at mortal risk.

“Eyewitness accounts of these attacks leave no doubt . . . that the bombs were attached (to the trucks) by Iraqi security personnel at checkpoints the trucks must pass,” Djerejian said, adding that there would be “serious consequences” if the Iraqis move against the Kurds.

The actions come as military intelligence reports have noted an upswing in activity among Saddam Hussein’s military forces in the western sectors of northern Iraq, a senior Pentagon official said.

The Iraqis have been “shifting some of their assets around within various military units,” such as tanks and artillery pieces, the official said.

Hussein could be readying an attack against the Kurds, or could also be building up some units to prepare for a large-scale military exercise, said the official, who has access to intelligence reports.

The allied air umbrella that has protected the Kurds from Hussein’s army continues, with more than four dozen U.S. combat aircraft involved in the effort, another senior Pentagon officer said.