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INTELLIGENCE
N. 30 New Series, 5 February 1996
Publishing since 1980

Editor
Olivier Schmidt
(intelligence-adi@wanadoo.fr;
tel/fax 33 1 40 51 85 19;
ADI, 16 rue des Ecoles,
75005 Paris, France)

ISSN 1245-2122
Copyright ADI 1996, reproduction in any form forbidden
without explicit authorization from the ADI.


IRAQ: SADDAM'S SAS-TRAINED "BULLET CATCHERS" POSE A PROBLEM

President Saddam Hussein's longevity in office is due to the
expertise of his personal security detachment, regarded by
Western intelligence analysts as one of the best in the world.
Its members were trained by five British Special Air Services
(SAS) non-commissioned officers, veterans of the "dirty war"
against the IRA in Northern Ireland.  According to Martin
Arostegui, author of "Twilight Warriors" -- a history of
special forces -- the SAS sergeants travelled to Baghdad in
1978 to reorganize security in the capital and show Saddam's
specially-selected bodyguards how to protect their boss "when
he came out among his people".  Acting on SAS advice, the flow
of traffic in Baghdad was altered to improve security, and
streets dictator travelled regularly had the central islands
dividing the traffic removed to allow his armor-plated vehicle
to execute immediate U-turns in case of ambush.  Saddam's
guards were trained in "killing villages" (a version of the
"killing house" at SAS Headquarters in Herefordshire) where
"assassins" were projected among buildings along an assault
course.  They were also trained in "rapid fire" marksmanship
with a range of weapons to enable them to selectively eliminate
potential assassins in crowded urban areas without killing
dozens of innocent civilians, and in the fine art of CQB (close
quarter battle), useful in rural ambush situations.  In media
reports since "Operation Desert Storm", allied military
commanders, including Gen. Peter De La Billiere (a former SAS
boss), have acknowledged the difficulty of "taking out" Saddam,
without mentioning the role of Britain's "twilight warriors".

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