Serbia's army commander has suggested that Iraq should give up hope to rebuild its Air Force with aging Saddam Hussein's jet fighters recently discovered in Serbia because they aren't in flying condition. The Iraqi Defence ministry said earlier this week that it has found during a search of its files that the 19 planes _ Soviet-built MiG-21s and MiG-23s _ were sent for servicing in 1989 to what was then Yugoslavia.
They remained there following an embargo imposed in 1990 against Iraq following its invasion of Kuwait, and then the wars in the Balkans in the 1990s. Iraqi officials said the planes could be critical in helping the country take responsibility for its own defence.