Opposition groups eye Brussels

Date: 03/10/02

IRAQI opposition groups are planning to hold a Brussels conference later this month to explore their country's future once Saddam Hussein's grip on Baghdad has been loosened.

The aim of the conference - expected to enjoy US support - is to bring together a disparate coalition of Shi'a Muslims with those advocating a greater separation between Islam and the state. It will focus on how a new Baghdad can be governed if the repressive Saddam-led regime is toppled.

A representative of the Iraqi National Conference, the biggest of the groups involved, said it has written to the Belgian government seeking its blessing for the event. 'Belgium would be a good choice, given that it holds the seat of the EU,' added Nabil Moussaoui from the INC's London office.

Representatives of six Iraqi parties, including two Kurdish parties from northern Iraq, met in the English capital last weekend to plan the Brussels meeting.

Details of it, including its precise date and venue, still have to be finalised.

Iraqi opposition groups are planning to hold a Brussels conference in October 2002 to explore their country's future once Saddam Hussein's grip on Baghdad has been loosened.