00                      HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 18                                                                     
01 Supporting the men and women of the United States armed forces in the military action                                   
02 to free Iraq and to protect the world from Saddam Hussein.                                                              
03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
04       WHEREAS, for years, the government of Saddam Hussein has posed a threat to the                                  
05 security of the United States and to world peace; and                                                                   
06       WHEREAS not only has Iraq attacked other nations, it has also breached the                                      
07 longstanding taboo against the use of chemical weapons of mass destruction by turning these                             
08 weapons upon its own Kurdish population; and                                                                            
09       WHEREAS, in 1988, shortly after the ceasefire that ended the Iran-Iraq war, the                                 
10 government of Saddam Hussein launched a major military offensive against the Kurds in                                   
11 northern Iraq, sending thousands of refugees fleeing into southeastern Turkey; and                                      
12       WHEREAS the Kurdish refugees reported use of chemical weapons in Kurdish                                        
13 villages, which was later borne out by soil samples that revealed the presence of the nerve gas                         
14 sarin; and                                                                                                              
15       WHEREAS, in 2001, Iraq attempted to shoot down surveillance planes patrolling the                               
16 no-fly zone as part of its ban on weapons inspectors; and                                                               

01       WHEREAS, in response to the mounting tension, in November 2002, the United                                      
02 Nations Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 1441, calling for Iraq to declare                               
03 any weapons of mass destruction programs in its borders; and                                                            
04       WHEREAS Iraq failed to comply with the resolution through omissions in its                                      
05 declaration on weapons of mass destruction; and                                                                         
06       WHEREAS Iraq has had a long history of failing to abide by United Nations                                       
07 resolutions after agreeing to do so;                                                                                    
08       BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature supports the decision of                                       
09 President George W. Bush to take military action against the despotic regime of Saddam                                  
10 Hussein in Iraq; and be it                                                                                              
11       FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature declares that military                                       
12 action is necessary to protect the United States and the rest of the world from aggression by                           
13 the government of Saddam Hussein; and be it                                                                             
14       FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature supports the brave men                                       
15 and women in the armed services who are engaged in protecting the people of Iraq and the                                
16 rest of the world from Saddam Hussein.                                                                                  
17       COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable George W. Bush, President                              
18 of the United States; the Honorable Richard B. Cheney, Vice-President of the United States                              
19 and President of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Bill Frist, Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate;                         
20 the Honorable Thomas Daschle, Minority Leader of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable J. Dennis                               
21 Hastert, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives; and to the Honorable Ted Stevens and                             
22 the Honorable Lisa Murkowski, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S.                                          
23 Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in Congress.