WASHINGTON, March 15: The United States has agreed to host a conference of former Iraqi officers in Washington in the coming weeks to talk about overthrowing Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, the Iraqi opposition said on Friday.

A US State Department official, Thomas Krajeski, was in London on Friday to inform the opposition Iraqi National Congress (INC) that the Bush administration has decided to let the officers gather in Washington, INC officials said.

“The conference is going to be in Washington and that will be very crucial to making it successful. Two hundred Iraqi officers will attend,” one INC official said.

State Department officials were not immediately available to confirm US approval of the INC’s plans.—Reuters