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Purported Saddam tape tells U.S. to leaveCoalition denies U.S. or British citizens held in Iraq
(CNN) -- An audiotape statement broadcast on an Arabic news station on Wednesday is said to be ousted Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein calling on U.S. troops to leave Iraq or face continuing attacks. The statement, broadcast on the news network Al Arabiya, accuses U.S. President George W. Bush of lying about the reasons for the U.S.-led invasion that deposed Saddam in April. The statement also says an American withdrawal is "inevitable -- if not today, (then) tomorrow." "We call on you to withdraw your troops as quickly as possible and without any conditions, because there is no reason for more losses that will be catastrophic for America if American officials, primarily you, persisted in the continuation of their aggression and aggressiveness," the statement said. The audiotape is being subjected to "technical analysis" by the CIA, an official says. The agency expects to determine within "a day or two" whether the voice on the tape is most likely the former Iraqi leader or not, the official says. Saddam has been on the run from U.S. troops since his overthrow. The United States has put a $30 million price on his head, and his sons Uday and Qusay were killed by U.S. troops in Mosul in July. Guerrilla forces loyal to Saddam and others, including some that U.S. officials say are linked to the al Qaeda terrorist network, have been continually attacking U.S. forces in Iraq. Bush has declared that Iraq is the "central front" in the war on terrorism launched after al Qaeda's attacks on New York and Washington two years ago. The latest tape says captured officials of Saddam's government could help negotiate a U.S. withdrawal. "You can contact them and conduct proper dialogue on this in a way as to provide security for your soldiers during withdrawal," the statement says, and warns that Iraqis will reject any plan "that is made under occupation." Earlier this month, the Lebanese Broadcasting Corp. aired a tape also purported to be Saddam, in which the voice denies responsibility for the August 29 bombing in Najaf that killed a senior Shiite cleric and at least 83 others. CIA officials said it was "probably the voice of Saddam Hussein." In past few months, several tapes said to have been made by Saddam have been aired, including one in July urging Iraqis to resist U.S. forces. Coalition: U.S. soldiers woundedThe report of the tape follows new attacks on U.S. troops in Iraq where at least four soldiers were wounded, the Coalition Public Information Center said Wednesday. A convoy of the Army's 4th Infantry Division came under fire from rocket-propelled grenades Tuesday afternoon near Balad, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) north of Baghdad. One soldier was wounded. Earlier in the day, three members of the 82nd Airborne were wounded when their vehicle hit an improvised explosive device in Ad Dawrah, on the outskirts of southern Baghdad. U.S. forces launched another raid Wednesday near Tikrit, Saddam's hometown, detaining three Iraqis in Al Munsha, according to sources within the 4th Infantry Division. The raid was based on information from an Iraqi civil defense soldier who said one of the men offered him money to detonate a bomb at the U.S. military base in Tikrit. Also in Tikrit, a mortar struck near the building where coalition and Iraqi officials were discussing the government selection process, the 4th Infantry sources said. No one was injured and no damage was reported. Iraqi police detained four suspects believed to be involved in the attack, the sources said. Military officials Wednesday also reported the death of a serviceman due to a non-hostile gunshot wound. The incident took place on Monday and occurred in north-central Iraq. With the death, 295 U.S. troops have died since the Iraq war began in March -- 188 from hostile fire. Coalition: No U.S. or British prisoners
Coalition officials said Wednesday there are no Americans or British nationals in U.S. custody in Iraq, despite a U.S. general's comment to the contrary. Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski said she believes six prisoners picked up during the Iraq war had, at one point, claimed to be Americans and two others said they were British nationals, but their status changed in the past 30 to 40 days. During a news briefing at the Abu Ghraib jail on Tuesday, Karpinski referred to the eight prisoners in U.S. custody at the facility, located west of Baghdad. She clarified her statement Wednesday. She did not say why they were no longer claiming to be Americans or Britons, but insisted they had not been transferred from the prison. U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld noted that the prisoners may have misled the U.S. military about their identities. Other developments• President Bush on Wednesday said the United States has "no evidence that Saddam Hussein was involved with the September 11" terrorist attacks. He also said that "there's no question that Saddam Hussein had al Qaeda ties." (Full story)
• The Iraqi Governing Council has agreed to create a security committee and a 450-strong police force for shrines in the Muslim Shiite holy city of Najaf, according to the office of council member Mohammed Barhul Uloom. Uloom, a moderate cleric, had suspended his membership in the council in protest of a massive car bombing last month at the Imam Ali Mosque in Najaf. The blast killed at least 83 people -- including the spiritual leader of the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq -- and wounded hundreds. • German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, French President Jacques Chirac and British Prime Minister Tony Blair plan to meet Saturday in Berlin to discuss the situation in Iraq and other European issues. (Full story) • For the first time since Saddam was ousted, Iraq will send a delegation to a meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, a cartel spokesman said. OPEC oil ministers are meeting September 24 in Vienna, Austria, said OPEC spokesman Omar Farouk Ibrahim. Ibrahim Bahr al-Uloum, Iraq's oil minister, will lead the delegation, the spokesman added. CNN's Ayman Mohyeldin, Walter Rodgers, Jason Bellini and Ben Wedeman contributed to this report.
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