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UN weapons inspectors in Iraq prepare for resumption of arms probe

UN weapons inspectors in Iraq prepare for resumption of arms probe

United Nations weapons inspectors in Iraq have begun preparations for the resumption Wednesday of an international arms probe in the country that was suspended nearly four years ago, a UN spokesman reported today.

The 17 experts from the UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will hold their first inspections "early in the morning tomorrow," according to spokesman Hiro Ueki. The team will be based at the Baghdad Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Centre.

In a related development, Dimitri Perricos, the Director of UNMOVIC's Division of Planning and Operations, who is leading the chemical, biological and missiles inspection team, and Jacques Baute, who is leading the IAEA Iraq Action Team in the nuclear field, briefed the press today on ways and means of conducting their respective work.

In other news, the UN office overseeing the humanitarian oil-for-food programme, which allows Iraq to use a portion of its crude revenues to purchase relief aid, reported today that Baghdad last week exported more than double the amount of oil of the previous week. The 17.1 million barrels earned an estimated $365 million.