Allies: We have proof Saddam hiding weapons

LONDON - Britain last night accused Iraq of hiding banned weapons, spying on United Nations arms inspectors and hindering their movements, hours before a key inspectors' report to the Security Council.

British officials briefed journalists on intelligence that they said proved their case, though they gave no indication about the source of their information.

At the same time the United States Secretary of State, Colin Powell, said Washington was preparing to make public its evidence that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction.

"The United States possesses several pieces of information which come from the work of our intelligence that show Iraq maintains prohibited weapons," Mr Powell told an Italian newspaper.

The Atlantic allies appear to be piling the pressure on Iraqi President Saddam Hussein on the eve of the inspectors' report.

Britain is prepared to make the case that Iraq is in breach of Security Council resolutions calling on it to disarm, even if inspectors produce no "smoking gun" of clear evidence.

Officials in London said they had shared intelligence with the inspectors that showed Iraq was hiding chemical warfare munitions, missile engines and documents about weapons programmes.

In one case, missile parts were squirrelled out of a production site in November before inspectors arrived.

Britain has also told the inspectors that Iraq was spying on them, bugging hotel rooms and even staging fake car accidents and other diversions to keep them from reaching certain sites, the officials said.

The briefings were timed to coincide with today's reports by chief weapons inspectors Hans Blix and Mohamed ElBaradei, and give a foretaste of the arguments Britain and the United States will make in the coming days.

Mr Blix, whose remit covers missiles, chemical and biological weapons, is expected to say Iraq has not been fully co-operative with inspections.

Mr ElBaradei, who covers nuclear weapons, will say his inspections need more time to be conclusive.

In the absence of a "smoking gun", London and Washington may face a difficult task in convincing sceptical council members and their own increasingly wary publics that war is justified.

The British officials said their intelligence also showed that Iraqi scientists had been threatened with harm, including the kidnapping of family members, if they co-operated with inspectors or showed them documents.

No Iraqi scientist has agreed to be interviewed while alone with the inspectors.

The officials said the Iraqi leadership had already begun looking for "an escape route" and at funnelling assets abroad.

Iraq denies it has an arsenal of weapons of mass destruction, or that its leaders would seek asylum abroad.

Mr Powell told the Corriere della Sera that the US planned to make public its evidence of Iraq's arsenal.

"Once we have made sure it can be done safely, I think that in the next week - or soon after - we can make public a good part of this material," he said.

The newspaper also quoted Mr Powell as saying that Saddam would be able to use the weapons soon.

Mr Powell has told European business and political leaders that the United States is willing to attack Iraq alone.

France, a veto-holder in the Security Council, has said it will join an attack on Iraq only if UN experts prove that Saddam has weapons of mass destruction.

- REUTERS

Herald feature: Iraq