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Wednesday, February 5, 2003
Iraq boosts military forces at borders
By Selcan Hacaoglu
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
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HABUR GATE, Turkey — Iraq has
boosted tank and artillery forces outside the
oil-rich northern Iraqi city of Mosul, but
most of the soldiers look exhausted and
undisciplined, Turkish truck drivers return
ing from Iraq said Tuesday.
Mosul, 60 miles south of the border with
Turkey, is just outside an autonomous
Kurdish-controlled region. The ethnically
mixed city is expected to be a top target for
U.S. troops if they strike Iraq from Turkey.
“There’s definitely been an increase in
troops,” said Suleyman Ali, a 35-year-old
trucker from southern Turkey. “There’s
always been some military presence, but
now there are many more cannons, tanks
and anti-aircraft guns.”
Gazi Idis, a driver who left Mosul on
Sunday, said tanks and artillery guns can be
seen under camouflage netting near the
main road leading to the city. He also said
Iraqis have been building up forces for the
past two months.
“They brought excavators to dig out
deep circular bunkers in the soil and they
moved their tanks into them,” Idis said.
TURKEY
Kurdish
inhabited areas
Mosul#
Most of the cross-bor
der truck traffic comes
from crude oil deliveries,
with Turkish drivers ferry
ing more than 80,000 bar
rels of Iraqi oil daily into
Turkey under a special
deal between the two
countries.
Hasan Zirik, also a
truck driver, said the Iraqis
were using sandbags to set
up foxholes on the sides of
road.
Idis said the barrels of
the guns were pointing
north toward Turkey,
where the United States is
hoping to base thousands
of troops for any possible
attack against Iraq.
Idis said the Iraqi sol
diers looked exhausted.
“They look to be in
shambles. I don’t think
they even can fire a single bullet at the
Americans,” Idis said. “They look like
THE BATTALIOS
Iraq boosts forces
Iraq has boosted tank and
artillery forces outside the oil-
rich northen city of Mosul, Turkish
oil truck drivers reported Tuesday.
l—
arm azer.
No tty rone
SYRIA
IRAQ
Baghdad©
\No-fly zone
IRAN
JORDAN
SAUDI
ARABIA
complained they haven;
ther food nor water thei
selves.
“They wear dim;
worn-out camouflage
forms,” Idis said. “Tfe
don’t look like they lu
military discipline.”
Husnu Dagli, anotlt
driver, said Iraqi autlt
ties were trying to rests
foreign information in I
area.
“They banned us
bringing in our mofe
phones more than a mot
ago,” Dagli said. "We
also not allowed to ti
or magazine
3a>
Stron
KUWAIT
SOURCES: Associated Press: CIA:
GlobalSecurity.org; ESRI
newspapers
with us.”
Dagli said Iraqis kee
asking him when a»;
would start.
The cross-border trai
is not approved by
refugees on the run more than soldiers.”
Idis said whenever he asked for water
from Iraqi troops along the road, the soldiers
United Nations but has been mostly ignota
given the billions of dollars in trade losih
Turkey following the 1991 Gulf War and ta ig record after
imposition of economic sanctions.
By
TI
WACO — /
ito Saturday’s
as crushed in
ersus Baylor g
ears scored 50
le Aggies, 77-<
The lead cha
:cond half, the
corer, Baylor’
lole a pass b
bright to senio
ff with a break
King, the Ag
ix points short
NEWS IN BRIEF
Toyota set to open
San Antonio plant
TOKYO (AP) — Toyota
Motor Corp. has decided to build
its new U.S. plant in San
Antonio, picking the Texas city
over a site in Arkansas.
Japan’s largest automaker is
expected to formally announce
the decision in the U.S. on
Monday.
The top Japanese automaker
is considering another plant in
North America to expand its
highly profitable business. The
$750 million truck plant being
considered could make up to
100,000 trucks per year and per
haps expand to make sport utility
vehicles.
Toyota officials say San
Antonio would be a better site
than Arkansas given it fits in bet
ter with their plan to tap Latin
American markets.
Dewhurst delays
water permit request
AUSTIN (AP) — Lt. Gov.
David Dewhurst has asked state
regulators to wait to take action
on a water permit application
until the Legislature has the
chance to clarify the commis
sion’s authority to issue sucli;|
permit.
Dewhurst made the requf!:|
in response to an application!
the San Marcos Rivt
Foundation for a permit
appropriate up to 1.3 millio
acre-feet of water a year
the Guadalupe and San Marcoil
rivers to maintain freshwater
inflows into the Guadalupe)
Estuary, Dewhurst said.
17 total f
ointers split ov
Reed Rowd
lajor Ian Rude
&M students
rthe game.
U.S. factory
orders rising
By Jeannine Aversa
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
&
WASHINGTON - Tk
nation’s manufacturers s«t
demand for their products
in December, offering a dosj
good news for an industry
has been struggling.
The Commerce DeparW
reported Tuesday that orders I
U.S. factories bounced backifj
December, rising by 0.4 percerj
over November orders, wltetj
orders declined by 0.8 percent.
LM sophomore
p/OT) Tuesday
C:
, a the ultimate
OWNING EXPERIEN<^
Factory orders
Here is a look at total new
orders to American factories.
Seasonally adjusted
320
315
310
305
300 J
i!
Change from
previous month
Dec. 0.4%
Nov. -0.8%
Oct. 1.4%
‘■hs m«mu
AMJJASOND
Note: Semiconductor manufacturers
not included.
SOURCE: Department of Commerce
HI Ml
(979) 680-8500
2406-6 SOUTH TEXAS AVENUE
COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS 77840
(NEXT TO AG SPORTS CUTS)
HHi
Stronger demand for comp4
ers and household appliances
more than offset weaker demand
for automobiles and other traflS'
portation equipment.
“We are seeing a little
break in the ice for American
manufacturers. Their currenl
order books are reflecting 2
brighter signal,” said Carl
Tannenbaum, chief economist at
LaSalle Bank.
“This is especially encourag
ing because, after all, manufac
turing has been the hardest hit in
the last couple of years and its
recovery is thought to be central
to an improving set of economic
conditions in general,” he said.
December’s perfonnance was
slightly better than the 0.3 per
cent advance analysts were
expecting.
But on Wall Street, war wor
ries pushed stocks down. Tk
Dow Jones industrial average
closed down 96.53 points at
8,013.29.
On Monday, a more for
ward-looking report showed
manufacturing grew in January
for the third straight montfi
though at a slower pace, as
worries about a war with M
dampened optimism.
nr mission
provider t
housing pr
hough a ut
of and i
mmitment
eimatiom
investors. (
strength f i
excellent
Busi
301Geor;
Colleges
Telephone
Fax- 9