Iraq air force wants Iran to give back its planes

Iraq's air force commander said on Sunday he hoped Iran would return some of the scores of Iraqi fighter plans that flew there ahead of the Gulf War in 1991, but conceded many of them were probably beyond repair.

Lieutenant-General Kamal al-Barzanji is eyeing the aircraft, which were flown to Iran to escape estruction, as he slowly rebuilds Iraq's shattered air force with American help. "Until now we have not brought back any aircraft. This case belongs to the politicians, but we hope we could bring back some of these aircraft to Iraq," he told a news briefing in Baghdad. (Reuters)