Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 112 Part 5.djvu/420

 ^ 112 STAT. 3178 PUBLIC LAW 105-338—OCT. 31, 1998 Public Law 105-338 105th Congress An Act Oct. 31, 1998 To establish a program to support a transition to democracy in Iraq. [H.R. 4655] Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of Iraq Liberation the United States of America in Congress assembled, Act of 1998. 22 USC 2151 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. ''°*^- This Act may be cited as the "Iraq Liberation Act of 1998". SEC. 2. FINDINGS. The Congress makes the following findings: (1) On September 22, 1980, Iraq invaded Iran, starting i an 8 year war in which Iraq employed chemical weapons against Iranian troops and ballistic missiles against Iranian cities. (2) In February 1988, Iraq forcibly relocated Kurdish civilians from their home villages in the Anfal campaign, killing an estimated 50,000 to 180,000 Kurds. (3) On March 16, 1988, Iraq used chemical weapons against Iraqi Kurdish civilian opponents in the town of Halabja, killing an estimated 5,000 Kurds and causing numerous birth defects that affect the town today. (4) On August 2, 1990, Iraq invaded and began a 7 month occupation of Kuwait, killing and committing numerous abuses against Kuwaiti civilians, and setting Kuwait's oil wells ablaze upon retreat. (5) Hostilities in Operation Desert Storm ended on February 28, 1991, and Iraq subsequently accepted the ceasefire conditions specified in United Nations Security Council Resolution 687 (April 3, 1991) requiring Iraq, among other things, to disclose fully and permit the dismantlement of its weapons of mass destruction programs and submit to long-term monitoring and verification of such dismantlement. George Bush. (6) In April 1993, Iraq orchestrated a failed plot to assassinate former President George Bush during his April 14- 16, 1993, visit to Kuwait. (7) In October 1994, Iraq moved 80,000 troops to areas near the border with Kuwait, posing an imminent threat of a renewed invasion of or attack against Kuwait. (8) On August 31, 1996, Iraq suppressed many of its opponents by helping one Kurdish faction capture Irbil, the seat of the Kurdish regional government. (9) Since March 1996, Iraq has systematically sought to deny weapons inspectors from the United Nations Special Commission on Iraq (UNSCOM) access to key facilities and \ documents, has on several occasions endangered the safe operation of UNSCOM helicopters transporting UNSCOM personnel

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