Tense start to Iraq arms mission

US planes keep Iraq under close surveillance

UN arms inspectors are meeting senior Iraqi officials in Baghdad at the start of their disarmament mission amid heightened tension in the no-fly zones patrolled by allied aircraft.

At the end of his first day in Baghdad the chief UN weapons inspector, Hans Blix, said he believed progress was being made as his team prepared to resume their monitoring work after a four-year absence.

The inspectors must check numerous sites

"The situation is tense at the moment, but there is a new opportunity and we are here to provide inspection which is credible," Mr Blix said.

US and British jets kept up the military pressure on Iraq on Monday, attacking targets in the northern and southern no-fly zones.

In the south, allied jets bombed three Iraqi air defence facilities just hours after a separate allied airstrike on similar targets in the north.

The US Central Command said the raids came after Iraqi air defences had fired surface-to-air missiles and anti-aircraft artillery at allied aircraft.

A White House spokesman said the Iraqi action amounted to a "material breach" of the latest UN resolution aimed at making Iraq disarm.

	:	Iraq spotlight
Click to see maps of Iraq's suspected weapons sites

The US Defence Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, said the Iraqi firing was "unacceptable," but he indicated that Washington was unlikely to press the UN for early military action against Baghdad over it.

No-fly zones

Baghdad has long disagreed with the no-fly zones imposed by the US, Britain and France after the 1991 Gulf War, in what was described as a humanitarian effort to protect Shia Muslims in the south and Kurds in the north.

It is for the president of the United States and the UN Security Council to make judgements about their view of Iraq's behaviour over a period of time

US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld

A BBC correspondent at the UN, David Bamford, says the US interpretation of resolution 1441 to include protection for aircraft patrolling the no-fly zones could prompt new debate about what exactly was agreed in the Security Council.

Our correspondent says many people believe Iraq's compliance with the resolution would be judged solely on how the inspectors are handled.

President George Bush said on Monday that if military action against Iraq were needed he would consult again with Nato members and "everybody will be able to make the decision that they're comfortable with".

Referring to the mission to disarm Iraq, Mr Bush said: "I hope it happens peacefully".

"But if it doesn't, people will know that our intent is to lead a coalition of like-minded, freedom-loving countries to disarm Saddam Hussein."

Tight schedule

Mr Blix and the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Mohamed El Baradei, are due to hold further talks in Baghdad on Tuesday with General Amir al-Saadi, an adviser to President Saddam Hussein.

Next steps

18 Nov: Inspectors arrive in Iraq

8 Dec: Iraq must reveal all programmes, plants and materials which could be used for weapons production

23 Dec: Inspections must have resumed

21 Feb: Inspectors to report to UN Security Council

Click here for the timetable

Mr Blix said weapons inspections would resume on 27 November.

The inspectors have a sweeping new mandate to search for weapons of mass destruction, including the power to visit sensitive sites such as presidential palace complexes.

The inspectors are talking of hundreds of sites they want to see.

Iraq is obliged to submit a full report of all banned weapons programmes by 8 December.

Our correspondent in Washington, Justin Webb, says the Bush administration believes that sooner or later the inspectors will be blocked.

In the meantime, the US military is continuing its build-up in the region, he says.