December 25, 2002	Wednesday	Shawwal 20, 1423

LONDON, Dec 24: Iraqi children took giant Christmas cards to Downing Street on Tuesday urging British Prime Minister Tony Blair not to wage war on Iraq.

“These children of Iraqi exiles have relatives in Iraq, and they’re worried about possible bombing,” said a member of the Stop the War coalition, which organized the protest.

The cards, featuring a picture of a crying child and the phrases “Don’t attack Iraq” and “Give peace a chance”, bore the signatures of thousands of people collected on British streets in recent weeks.

The 10 children, aged eight to 15, were ushered through a metal detector to take the cards to the polished black door of 10 Downing Street, the prime minister’s home and office, although Blair himself was not on hand to accept them.

Blair backs US President George Bush’s firm line on Iraq, and his government has pledged to join any coalition that takes military action against Baghdad.

Last September, the Stop the War coalition co-organized one of the biggest anti-war street marches ever seen in London. It is planning another major protest for Feb 14-15.

Its spokesman Andrew Burgin said on Tuesday that 500,000 children had died since international sanctions were imposed on Iraq in 1990, and that more children would suffer if a new war broke out.—AFP