BAGHDAD, Nov 12: Iraq’s parliament voted unanimously on Tuesday to reject a tough UN disarmament resolution seen as a last chance to avoid an invasion, but agreed to leave the final word to President Saddam Hussein.

In a sign that Saddam might override MPs and accept the UN security council’s unanimous ultimatum, his elder son Uday, who is himself an MP, urged acceptance, albeit with certain provisos.

Speaker Saadun Hammadi announced the results of the two separate votes in parliament, both conducted by a show of hands.

The 250-member parliament had met for a second day to decide on a recommendation from its Arab and international relations committee to reject Resolution 1441, despite Uday’s call to agree to the UN text.

Hammadi told the press shortly before the vote that “from what I can see, there is a unanimous position that the National Assembly cannot accept the resolution, and will reject it”.

In a separate vote, MPs also decided to “mandate the political leadership ... and Saddam ... to do what they deem fit to defend the great people of Iraq”.

Uday, who runs an influential media empire, made clear he thought his father should accept the UN resolution, albeit “according to well-defined limits”.

“We have to accept the UN security council resolution which is at the centre of this emergency session,” he said in a working document submitted to MPs.

Uday called on the Arab League to provide an “umbrella” for Iraq, and demanded that Arab experts be part of the disarmament teams from the outset of their mission, a proposal backed by the League.

But he also warned that Iraq must take the initiative and launch “armed action” if diplomacy fails to resolve the disarmament impasse.

“Now we will give time to diplomacy to achieve the conditions” required by Baghdad to agree to Resolution 1441.

“If these conditions are not achieved we have to take the initiative of rejection and of armed action against the side which intends us evil,” he warned.—AFP