US presses for help in Iraq, top Iraqi captured

UNITED NATIONS/BAGHDAD - The United States pushed for a new UN resolution on Thursday that would encourage countries to send troops to Iraq but quickly encountered some resistance from key Security Council members demanding greater control.

US Secretary of State Colin Powell, who met with UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan after the devastating attack on UN headquarters in Baghdad, said he was exploring a new Security Council resolution that "might encourage others" to support the struggling US and British effort to stabilize the country.

"We're looking forward to language that might call on member states to do more," Powell said.

In Baghdad, where rescue efforts continued amid fading hopes two days after the deadly truck bomb killed 24 people, the US military reported a success, announcing the capture of Saddam Hussein's feared cousin, 'Chemical Ali' Hassan al-Majid, No. 5 on a US list of the 55 most-wanted Iraqi fugitives.

His capture, the second of a senior Iraqi leader this week, fueled US hopes its forces might be closing in on Saddam Hussein and are capable of quelling the chaos that has gripped the country.

The top UN envoy in Iraq, Sergio Vieira de Mello, was killed in the blast and his spokesman, Salim Lone, said, "We hope until the bitter end to find someone, but it does not look good at this stage."

Annan told Baghdad staff in a recorded message: "The ache in our souls is almost too much to bear."

A previously unknown Islamist group claimed responsibility for the suspected suicide bombing in Baghdad, Dubai-based Al Arabiya reported. The Arabic television channel said the group called itself the "Armed Vanguards of the Second Mohammed Army."

The United States seized on the bombing to try again to get international help in Iraq, where ambush attacks and sabotage have continued since the United States declared major combat operations over May 1.

Most attacks had been directed against occupying American soldiers, before Tuesday's carnage at the world body.

The United States wants countries to commit more troops to Iraq to provide security for humanitarian work despite its insistence on remaining firmly in control of the occupation and reconstruction of the country.

One purpose of a new resolution would be to get Muslim troops into Iraq, both from Pakistan and Middle Eastern countries, which have refused to send soldiers without a UN mandate.

Powell said about 30 countries besides the United States have contributed 22,000 troops, and more were expected.

But France immediately said Washington would have to broaden the political role of the United Nations if it wanted other nations to pitch in.

"To share the burden and the responsibilities in a world of equal and sovereign nations, also means sharing information and authority," French envoy Michel Duclos told a Security Council discussion on Iraq. Russian Ambassador Sergei Lavrov agreed.

Annan said he thought that despite differences among Security Council members, there was a willingness to see that Iraq was stabilised.

"I think the issue of Iraq is of great concern to everybody, regardless of the divisions that existed before the war," Annan said in reference to the refusal by the Security Council, driven by France, to authorise the invasion of Iraq.

Annan vowed the United Nations would stay in Iraq and continue its work but operations were expected to resume Saturday with a reduced staff.

In Jordan, UN officials said a "partial evacuation" was under way, with planes carrying wounded staff and others who chose to leave arriving in Amman. More were expected in coming days, with close to half of the 350 UN staff in Baghdad expected to leave, at least temporarily.

Majid, the King of Spades on a US military deck of cards depicting fugitive members of Saddam's government, was initially reported killed during the war in Iraq. Central Command gave no details on when or where he was captured.

He was a ruthless member of Saddam's clan who earned his nickname by using poison gas to kill thousands of Kurdish civilians in the village of Halabja in 1988.

Taha Yassin Ramadan, Saddam's vice president, was captured Monday night.

- REUTERS

Herald Feature: Iraq