- WASHINGTON -- The United
States has selected a spot in Baghdad's top security Green zone and will
spend more than $1.5 billion to build a new, fortress like embassy in the
Iraqi capital, the State Department said.
-
- The present embassy is located in temporary facilities
and was not intended for a long-term use. The $1.5 billion will come out
of the $80 billion supplemental budget that President Bush sought for Iraq
last week.
-
- It is unclear when the new complex will be ready. The
US embassy in Iraq is the most expensive of the more than 250 missions
Washington maintains abroad. In addition to the main headquarters in Baghdad,
the US will also build four regional offices, or consulates, in various
cities around Iraq.
-
- The role of the US embassy is unique because of the presence
of about 138,000 American soldiers in Iraq. In other countries, the embassy
does not have to deal with American troops.
-
- The State Department says safety of the new Iraqi embassy
staff is its top priority. Since the end of the war, hundreds of people,
including civilians, have been killed in attacks led by militants opposed
to the US occupation of the country.
-
- US officials say the new premises will have special protection
arrangements to thwart bombings like those at the US embassies in East
Africa that killed 231 people, including 21 Americans, in 1998. Because
of the security concerns, the new embassy will probably be among the most
highly protected embassies in the world, officials say.
-
- http://www.dawn.com/2005/01/31/int3.htm
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