MRS I. Yearden (Your Letters, Mar 13) resorts to the old ploy of referring to another problem instead of the one mentioned in my earlier letter, namely the crimes of Saddam Hussein.

I can assure her that I know of many of these crimes, including the poisoning of progressive women in Iraq years ago. At that time, together with women from the Iraqi Women's League, I demonstrated in Manchester and travelled to London with three other women, gaining admission into the Iraqi Embassy to protest about that and the gassing of the Kurds in Halabja. It was not the most enjoyable experience at a time when the British government considered Saddam Hussein to be our friend and was selling him arms. If Mrs Yearden wishes to show any sympathy for the Kurds, she could protest against the invasion of Northern Iraq by Turkey and the killing of the Kurds, which is ignored by Britain and America as Turkey is used as a base for their illegal bombing of Iraq.

I do not support this bombing. It is against international law, having no mandate from the United Nations.

What does concern me are the deaths of more than half a million children since the war and through the sanctions she supports. If sanctions were lifted, Saddam would not be able to use them for propaganda, as she maintains he does.

The breaking of international law and the suffering of the people of Iraq, caused both by Saddam and the sanctions, is not something I want on my conscience.

ELIZABETH TEBBS,

secretary,

Prestwich & Whitefield CND.