A group of 18 high-ranking former military leaders, intelligence analysts, diplomats, academics and heads of think-tanks on Wednesday urged US President George W. Bush to resist military actions against Iraq and focus on capturing the terrorists responsible for the September 11 attacks.
They stressed in a letter to Bush that military intervention against Iraq would hinder efforts to reduce terrorism by " splintering the global coalition so vital to identifying and bringing to justice terrorists around the world, including those remaining of the al Qaeda network."
The letter represents a nonpartisan effort to counter the growing lobby both inside and outside the government for extending the war on terrorism to Iraq.
"The US has assembled an international coalition that supports US military action designed to bring to justice those who perpetrated the attacks of September 11. Any effort by the US to include Iraq as a target without evidence directly linking Iraq to the terrorist attacks would be counterproductive, and will likely cause the coalition to fracture," said former UN Iraq weapons inspector Scott Ritter, one of the letter' signers.
They also warned Bush that "a new war would increase instability inside Iraq," further harm Iraqi civilians and cause an "increase in anti-American sentiments in the Middle East and in Muslim countries that may fuel the appeal of terrorist organizations."
Signatories of the letters include retired Navy Admiral Eugene Carroll, former National Intelligence Officer of Central Intelligence Agency William Christison, former Chief of Mission to Iraq Ed Peck, former Ambassador to Saudi Arabia James Akins, former Senator George McGovern and Director of the Institute for Policy Studies John Cavanagh.
(Xinhua News Agency January 24, 20020
