Iraq: Update of IRQ25077.E of 12 September 1996 - information on the Iraqi security force called Amn

Meaning "security" (HRW July 1993), Amn forms part of the titles of a number of Iraqi institutions, namely the Amn al-Khass (Special Security Service, SSS), the Amn al-Amm (General Security Service, GSS) and the Al-Amn al-Askariyya (Military Security Service, MSS) (JIR July 1997, 312-313). Each of these services is responsible to the President and are linked to the President's Secretary (Al-Sharq al Aswat 14 May 1999).

The GSS or Secret Police once formed a

... part of the civilian police force under the aegis of the Ministry of the Interior until the late 1970s, when the unit was hived off and organised as a separate agency responsible directly to the Presidential Palace. The main focus of the General Security Service (GSS) is internal security. Many detectives from the anti-crime section of the civilian police were transferred to the GSS in the late 1980s. The HQ of the GSS was formerly in the Bataween district of Baghdad, but in 1990 the GSS moved to a new HQ in the Al Baladiat area of the city; the Bataween building is now the agency's main prison. The Secret Police are found in police stations throughout Iraq. The ‘ordinary' police occupy the ground floor, while the Secret Police are usually on the next floor. The Secret Police also have their own separate buildings and offices. They deal with crimes such as smuggling and also closely monitor the civilian population for any signs of dissension against the regime.

... [T]he agency is not as powerful as it once was, [with] some of its previous functions being taken over by other agencies. However, it remains a very important part of Iraq's intelligence network, being the eyes and ears of the regime at [the] local level. The Secret Police have a sizeable number of personnel (about 8,000) and maintain a presence in every town and village. Other units within the GSS include the following:

Security Branch. This unit detects and deals with any issent within the GSS;

The military brigade of the GSS... (JIR Aug. 1997, 367).

One source suggested that the reduction in the GSS' power may result from "the fact that members were involved in the coup attempt against Saddam [Hussein] in 1996, and were arrested and executed" (CSIS Feb. 1998, 8).

In addition, the GSS is said to operate "an extensive network of informers, under the auspices of the 1970 Law No. 83 ‘The Law of Securing the Trustworthy [al-Mu'taman] in Defending the Revolution'" (FAS 26 Nov. 1997). A 1993 article further mentioned "special units of Kurdish agents known as Mafarez Khaseh" (HRW July 1993). In a 2002 Salon interview, former United Nations Weapons Inspector Scott Ritter, was quoted as calling the GSS "the gestapo of Iraq" and referring to a "children's prison" at Amn al-Amm headquarters" (19 Mar. 2002). Human Rights Watch noted that the GSS was involved in the arrest, trial and sentencing of individuals suspected in the murder of Shi'a cleric Muhammad Sadeq al-Sadr in 2000 (5 Dec. 2000, 385).

The Amn al-Khass (SSS) is described as the most powerful agency (JIR June 1999, 56), which is responsible for protecting the president and suppressing opposition to him (ibid. June 1997, 312). It was led by Qusay Hussein, son of Saddam Hussein, who is described asthe "single most powerful individual in Iraq's vast security/intelligence network" after Saddam (ibid.). According to The Times, Qusay remains the head of the SSS (22 June 2002). Jane's Intelligence Review described the SSS as follows:

The SSS was set up at the end of the Iran-Iraq War. The man charged with organising the agency and being its first head was Hussein Kamil, Saddam's ill-fated step-son. As Minister for Military Industrialisation, Kamil also headed Iraq's covert drive to build weapons of mass destruction. He used the resources of the SSS to run an extensive arms and technology procurement network, operating through a host of front companies. Kamil defected to Jordan in August 1995. He later returned home, unwisely believing guarantees that he would be unharmed, and was promptly killed. The SSS now answers directly to Saddam's son Qusay, who is its commander-in-chief. The role of the SSS is to provide personal protection for Saddam [Hussein] and to detect and deal with any threat against him. In the competitive world of Iraq's security/intelligence agencies, the Amn Al-Khass is at the top of the pecking order and enjoys great power and prestige....

Because of the sensitive nature of the work carried out by the SSS, and because members in effect constitute Saddam's praetorian guard, recruits are chosen with great care. The regime goes to extremes to ensure that nobody who can harm the president gets within reach of him. Recruits for the Amn Al-Khass normally have to be from a certain tribe or area noted for its loyalty to Saddam. A recruit should be either from Tikrit (Saddam's home town), Hawuija (about 25 km to the north) or Samarra (about 35 km to the south). Members of the Al Delaim tribe in the west are also acceptable. ... The strength of the SSS is currently about 5,000 officers and soldiers, who operate in plain clothes.

The Amn Al-Khass HQ is on Palestine Street in Baghdad. ... However, much of the work of the [agency] is organised from a much bigger building, a multi-storey office block near the Rashid Hotel behind the Palace of Meetings. The vast majority of the members are based in Baghdad, with just two small offices in other cities: one in Basra and the other in Mosul.

The SSS provides teams that guard Saddam around the clock. ... Quite apart from providing bodyguard services, the SSS also ... take[s] a proactive role in detecting and neutralising any threat.... This can involve operations against dissident elements both in Iraq and abroad. SSS agents entered the Kurdish enclave [in August 1996 and] ... played an important role in the suppression of the Shia rebellion that followed the Gulf War (July 1997, 314).

The MSS is considered responsible for "detecting and dealing with any dissent/subversion within the armed forces" (ibid. 313). It is described as:

... formerly a sub-section of the Special Bureau of the Estikhabarat [Military Intelligence] ... [but] was hived off [in 1992] as a new, independent agency carrying out the same function but reporting directly to the Presidential Palace.... The MSS has a strength of about 5,000 and its personnel monitor, or are assigned to, every formation in the armed forces at every echelon, from the lowest to the highest. Members of the MSS also investigate corruption and embezzlement within the armed services (ibid. Aug. 1997, 367).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Al-Sharq al Aswat [London, in Arabic]. 14 May 1999. "Saddam's Presidential Office Reorganized." (FBIS-NES-1999-0514 14 May 1999/WNC)

Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) [Washington]. February 1998. Anthony H. Cordesman. Key Targets in Iraq. [Accessed 31 July 2002]

Federation of American Scientists (FAS). 26 November 1997. John Pike. "General Security Service [Mudiriyat al-Amn al-Amma]. [Accessed 24 July 2002]

Human Rights Watch (HRW). 5 December 2000.

_____. July 1993. Genocide in Iraq: The Anfal Campaign Against the Kurds. [Accessed 31 July 2002]

Jane's Intelligence Review (JIR). June 1999. Vol. 11, No. 6. "Intelligence Monitor," p. 56.

_____. August 1997. Vol. 9, No. 8. Sean Boyne. "Inside Iraq's Security Network Part Two," pp. 365-367.

_____. July 1997. Vol. 9, No. 7. Sean Boyne. "Inside Iraq's Security Network Part One," pp. 312-314.

Salon [San Fransisco]. 19 March 2002. Asla Aydintasbas. "Scott Ritter: Is Saddam Washed Up?" Hosted by Buzzle.com. [Accessed 31 July 2002]

The Times [London]. 22 June 2002. Richard Beeston. "Saddam May Hand Power to His Son to Avoid Attack." [Accessed 1 Aug. 2002]

Additional Sources Consulted

IRB Databases

NEXIS

Internet sites including:

Counter Intelligence, Counter Espionage, Counter Terrorism

Country Assessments 2002

Country Reports 2000-2002

Desert Voice

Eye Spy Magazine

Global Security Newswire

Intel Center

Iraqi National Congress

Jane's Intelligence Review (1998-2000)

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Special Operations.com

Spy News

World News Connection

Yahoo