IRAQ: MILITARY PARADE

(1 Jan 2001) Natural Sound
XFA
Saddam Hussein oversaw an impromptu parade of Iraqi tanks, warplanes and missiles in Baghdad on Sunday.
The spectacle was seen as a show of support for the Palestinian uprising against Israel.
The ceremony was billed as "The Call of Jerusalem Day" and featured a truck bearing a statue resembling Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque, the focus of an emotional dispute between Israel and the Palestinians.
Iraq normally celebrates Army Day on January 6, and it was unclear whether another parade would be held on that day.
Saddam signalled the start of the procession by firing two rifle shots from the presidential box, which was positioned opposite a new statue of himself.
Iraqi warplanes, helicopters, bombers, missiles and tanks were exhibited in the parade which took place in Baghdad's Grand Celebrations Ground.
All of the missiles in the parade had a 90-mile range, and are thus permitted under U-N Security Council resolutions passed after the 1991 Gulf War.
Thousands of troops participated, including the elite Republican Guards and the paramilitary force known as Saddam's Fedayeen.
The ceremony's billing as "The Call of Jerusalem Day" is reminiscent of Iraq's name for the day its forces entered Kuwait in August 1990.
They called that "The Call Day" to indicate its forces were responding to a call from Kuwaitis for liberation.

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