Upon consultation with the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei, has decided to temporarily relocate all IAEA inspectors currently in Baghdad to Bahrain due to concern for their safety in view of the escalating situation in Iraq.

This decision has been taken in parallel with that of the Unied Nations Special Commission on Iraq (UNSCOM) which is also withrawing its personnel and on whose logistic support the IAEA inspectors are dependent.