Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, March 24, 1991                   TAG: 9103240110
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: The New York Times
DATELINE: MANAMA, BAHRAIN                                LENGTH: Medium

SADDAM SHIFTS CABINET/ IRAN SAYS IT WILL KEEP WARPLANES

There was no indication the Cabinet changes alter Saddam's hold on power, and, in Washington, President Bush said they were insignificant because "Saddam Hussein still appears to be calling the shots."

But the moves do elevate the only Shiite Muslim in a senior position in the government. Some Arab officials here said the move could be meant as a gesture to the country's restive Shiite majority.

The government changes came amid reports of rebel gains in the north, where Kurdish guerrillas were said to be advancing into areas with Arab majorities, including the region's largest city, Mosul.

In a further blow to Baghdad, the Iranian government confirmed Saturday that it would confiscate the Iraqi warplanes that took refuge in Iran during the Persian Gulf War, saying the planes would be partial compensation for damage Iran suffered during its 1980-88 war with Iraq.

Iran had originally said that the planes, estimated to number more than 150, would be impounded until the end of hostilities, then returned.

The announcement on the planes appeared to make relatively little difference to Baghdad's efforts to contain two rebellions, since the American-led allies have forbidden flights by Iraqi fixed-wing aircraft and backed up the ban by shooting down two in the past four days.

But the development underlined a rapid deterioration of Iraqi-Iranian relations. The Tehran government followed a neutral course during the Iraqi occupation of Kuwait, but is widely believed to be supporting the Shiite insurgency that sprang up in southern Iraq after Baghdad's defeat in the war.

Baghdad radio said the new government is to be headed by Saadoun Hammadi, who had been deputy prime minister. Hammadi, a Shiite Muslim, will have the title of prime minister, a post left vacant in the past and assumed to belong to Saddam, who is also head of the Revolutionary Command Council.

Tariq Aziz, who had been foreign minister, was named to one of two deputy prime minister posts. Interior Minister Ali Hasan Majid retained his post.

The three men are central figures of the ruling Baath Party and viewed as among the closest aides to Saddam.