Below is the text of an article in Common Sense issue 27 (Winter 1998/1999) on the topic of sanctions against the population of Iraq.

Dajjal at work: a list of prohibited items into Iraq

Here are some of the products which the Security Council of the United Nations considers that the Iraqi civilian population are not entitled to. The list includes mainly consumer products which are now available to the world's population without any restriction. The sanctions have been in place for over 7 years with no intention of lifting them. The list shows that they are hardly intended to protect the "international community" from a belligerent Iraq, but are a fulfilment of the prophesy that whoever does not follow the Dajjal (Anti - Christ) shall not even be allowed to eat.

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A

Accumulators, Adhesive paper, Aluminium foil, AM-FM receivers, Ambulances, Amplifiers, Answering machines, Armored cable, Ashtrays, Auto polish, Axes

B

Bags, Baking soda, Balls (for children, for sport), Baskets, Bath brushes, Batteries, Battery chargers, Beads, Bearings, Bed lamps, Belts, Benches, Bicycles, Books (all categories included), Bottles, Bowls, Boxes, Brass, Broilers, Busses

C

Calculators, Cameras, Candles, Candlesticks, Canvas, Carpets, Cars, Carts, Carving knives, Cellophane, Chairs, Chalk, Chess boards, Chiffon, Children's wear, Chisels Clocks, Cloth, Clutches, Coats, Coaxial cable, Cogs, Coils, Colors for painting, Combs, Compressors (for cooling equipment), Computers and computer supplies, Copper, Cupboards, Cups

D

Desk lamps, Desks, Detergents, Dictaphones, Dishware, Dishwashers, Dolls, Doorknobs, Doormats, Drawing knives, Dresses, Drills, Dryers, Dustcloths, Dyes, Dynamos

E

Easels, Electric cookers, Electric cords, Envelopes, Eyeglasses

F

Fabrics, Fans, Fax, machines, Fibers, Files, Filing cabinets, Filing cards, Films, Filters, Flashlights, Flowerpots, Forks, Fountain pens, Furniture polish, Fuses

G

Gas burners, Gauges, Generators, Girdles, Glass, Glue, Gowns, Grills, Grindstone

H

Hairpins, Hammers, Handkerchiefs, Hats, Headlights, Headphones, Hearing aids, Hedge trimmers, Helmets, Hoes, Hooks, Hookup wires, Hoses, Hydraulic jacks

I

Ink, Ink cartridges, Insulator strips, Interruptors

J

Jackets, Jacks, Joints, Jumpers

K

Kettles, Knives

L

Lamp shades, Lathes, Lawn mowers, Leather, Levers, Light bulbs, Light meters, Lime

M

Magazines (including scientific and medical journals), Magnesium, Magnets, Masonite, Mastic, Matches, Measurings equipment, Mica, Microfiche, Microphones, Microscopes, Mirrors, Mops, Motorbikes, Motors, Mufflers, Mugs, Music cassettes, Music CDs, Musical instruments

N

Nail brushes, Nail files, Napkins, Notebooks

O

Oil cans, Oil gauges, Oil lamps, Oscillators

P

Packaging materials, Pails, Painters' brushes, Paints, Pans, Paper clips, Paper for printing, Paper for wrapping, Paper for writing, Pens, Percolators, Pesticides, Photocopiers, Photometers, Pincers, Pincettes, Pins, Plastics, Plates, Plexiglas, Pliers, Plugs, Plywood, Porcelain, Pots, Potties, Press drills, Pressure cookers, Printing equipment, Pulleys, Putty

R

Radiators for cars, Razor blades, Razors, Reels, Relays, Riveters, Roasters, Rubber, Rugs, Rulers

S

Sandals, Sandpaper, Saucers, Saws, Scales, Scoreboards, Screws, Seals, Seats, Shampoo, Sheers, Shelves, Shirts, Shock absorbers, Shoe polish, Shoes, Shoppint carts, Shovels, Silicon, Silver polish, Skirts, Soap, Soap pads, Sockets, Socks, Solder, Soldering irons, Spark plugs, Spatulas, Sponges, Spoons, Stamps, Staplers, Starters, Stoves, Straps, Suits, Sun hats, Swimming suits, Switches

T

Tables, Tacks, Tags, Telephone cables, Telephones, Tents, Thermomethers, Threads, Timber, Timers, Tin, Tire pumps, Tissue paper, Toasters, Toilet paper, Tongs, Toothbrushes, Toothpicks, Towels, Toys, Tractors, Transformers, Trash cans, Tripods, Troughs, Trousers, Trowels, Trucks, Trunks, TV sets, Typewriters

V

Vacuum cleaners, Valves, Vans, Vaseline, Vases, Venetian blinds, Ventilators, Videotapes, Voltage regulators

W

Waffle irons, Wagons, Wallets, Wallpaper, Washing machines, Wastepaper baskets, Watches, Water pumps, Wax, Welders, Wheelbarrows, Wheels, Window shades, Wood, Wool, Wrenches

Z

Zoom lenses.

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The UN Sanctions Committee has not issued any comprehensive list of prohibited products, as such a list would include millions of articles. Instead the Sanctions Committee evaluates applications for exporting goods to Iraq on the base of Security Council Resolutions which allow foodstuffs, medicines and products for essential civilian needs. Anything not deemed 'essential' by the members of the Sanctions Committee is denied to the Iraqi population.

The Committee has the sole discretion in determining what is essential for every Iraqi. Decisions by the Committee are made behind closed doors. Any one Committee member may veto a permission. Applications for the export of items to Iraq must be made by the potential exporter to the authorities of individual UN member states who then forward the application to the UN Sanctions Committe in New York. The Committee will then assess the qualification of the application, that is whether it is food, medicine or an 'essential civilian need', determine that the Iraqi government has also endorsed the transaction, check prices and delivery conditions, and if everything is OK, forward its approval to the authorities of the country where the application came from. The authorities then inform the applicant. Only then is it possible to ship the items. Before being sent, public officials must check that the items concur in quality and quantity to the document approved by the Sanctions Committee. Any discrepancy results in delaying the shipment.