Iraq: May 4, 2000

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Iraqi authorities are questioning a group of military officers in the Special Security Service and Republican Guard regarding a plot to kill Saddam. The suspects are related to a former Defense Minister, Staff Lieutenant General Ali Hasan al-Majid, who is a cousin of Saddam and a member of the Revolutionary Command Council. It is not clear if this coup attempt is related to the failed coup attempt last January that resulted in the execution of 37 officers.--Stephen V Cole