Feeling Helpless, U.S. Recruiting Saddam’s Agents

"Pragmatically, those are people who are potentially very useful because they have access to information, so you have to compromise on that," one U.S. official said.

"The only way you can combat terrorism is through intelligence. It’s the only way you’re going to stop these people from doing what they’re doing," added another official according to the paper.

Iraqi officials put the number of former Iraqi agents that have been recruited so far from dozens to a few hundred, while a U.S. official saying that "we’re reaching out very widely."

"There is an obvious evolution in American thinking. First the police are reconstituted, then the army. It is logical that intelligence officials from the regime would also be recruited," the Post quoted a Western diplomat as saying.

According to former Iraqi intelligence officials and agents, the daily said that U.S. officials have managed to reach out to agents who once were assigned to Syria , Iran , Israel and the United Nations.

One officer, a 23-year veteran who spied on the United Nations, said about 100 agents worked on Iran , between 75 and 100 on the United Nations and 50 each on Israel and Syria , in addition to their networks and contacts, according to the Post.

One former Iraqi officer said he believed that about 300 people were being recruited.

Adil Abdul Mahdi, the director of the political bureau for the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI), put at 20 the number of recruited Iraqi agents in the Iran-focused section with the once-dreaded military intelligence.

Quoting Mahdi, the Post said that at least one of those agents was sent to the United States for training last month.

The recruitment of such agents comes as U.S. overseer in Iraq Paul Bremer had warned that Iraq ‘s porous borders with Iran and Syrian helped fighters from Iran , Syria and Saudi Arabia infiltrate into Iraq to carry out attacks against the U.S. troops.