He said those who had fought against the US/UK forces were people belonging to the special operation wing under the Iraqi intelligence agency. They included two women suicide bombers. He accused Saddam of killing more Iraqis per month than were killed in the US-led war.

Chalabi said his party played a role in handing over former Iraqi Deputy Premier Tareq Aziz to US forces. “The report that Aziz surrendered to US authorities of his own accord is not correct. We told the US authorities where he was staying,” he added

He said his men had also assisted in the arrest of many other leaders of the former regime, including Hussein Takriti, commander of the air defense forces.

He said the new Iraqi interim authority would be formed in a democratic manner. “We are now discussing this matter with all Iraqi parties. We are trying to reach out to a large number of Iraqi people including tribal and trade union leaders for consultation,” he said. Chalabi said he wanted the voice of more Iraqi personalities in various parts of the country to be heard.

He did not want to play a political role in the presence of Americans, he said. “Because, personally I don’t like to take instructions from others and I don’t want to be under the influence of any party. Otherwise people will have doubts who is the actual authority. But I want to have a role which will allow me to speak out in defense of the Iraqi people, their freedom and civil rights,” he added.

He said many leaders of the former regime were still in the country but revealed that Kamal Mustafa Al-Takriti, commander of the Republican Guards, and other senior military officers had left the country.

The Iraqi opposition leader also said the Badr brigade under the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution was seeking to become part of the Iraqi armed forces. He opposed the presence of armed militias in the country. “We want to neutralize these forces and bring them under a single military force to stabilize the country,” he added.