Saddam Hussein cut Iraq into four military regions yesterday and last night by decree appointed special commanders over each to "confront foreign aggression" against Iraq, according to the Iraqi News Agency.
"An emergency presidential decree was issued . . . stating that four regional commands were set up to secure requirements of confronting and destroying any foreign aggress ion," the agency said.
Earlier, President Saddam chaired a meeting of Iraq's top bodies, the Revolutionary Command Council and Ba'ath Party leadership, to discuss "all necessary measures to face a US-British aggression", an official statement said.
Iraq remains "the target of their aggression, either by a resort to arms or with the embargo", it said, referring to UN sanctions in force since Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait.
The Iraqi leadership said that "despite all Iraq's sacrifices, the embargo has not been lifted" and vowed Baghdad would "not bow" to the will of the United States.
The Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Tariq Aziz, charged that Mr Richard Butler's negative report on Iraqi co-operation was designed to justify a US and British attack. "This ill-intentioned report was drawn up on purpose to justify a US and British military aggression against Iraq," he said.
Mr Butler's report "is full of lies and a falsification of the truth," he said, arguing that Iraq had fulfilled its pledge of renewed co-operation with UNSCOM. Mr Aziz also said the UNSCOM chairman had taken the decision to evacuate without consulting the Security Council. Over the past 25 days, UNSCOM experts visited a total of 427 sites, he said in a letter to the UN Secretary General, Mr Kofi Annan, criticising "the actions of certain teams and their manner of working".