| Al-Qaeda and supporters of ousted Iraqi President Saddam Hussein are using neighboring countries such as Lebanon and Syria to finance attacks in Iraq with a $1 billion budget, al-Hayat said, citing the Iraqi prime minister. Former members of the ousted Baath regime, who are wanted by the Iraqi authorities, are planning attacks in Iraq from Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Greece and other countries, Ayad Allawi said in an interview with the London-based Saudi newspaper. The Iraqi government plans to issue arrest warrants for these former members of the Iraqi regime, he said. Iraqi security forces arrested in the past three days three leading members of an al-Qaeda cell in Iraq, including the driver of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian linked to al-Qaeda, Allawi said. The three are cooperating with the Iraqi authorities and are providing clues about coordination between al-Qaeda and former members of the Baath regime, he said. Allawi plans to go on a tour of Arab countries to discuss security in Iraq. |