BBC NEWS | Programmes | From Our Own Correspondent | 'Salvador Option' mooted for Iraq

<!doctype html public "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd"> <html> <head> <title>BBC NEWS | Programmes | From Our Own Correspondent | 'Salvador Option' mooted for Iraq</title> <meta name="keywords" content="BBC, News, BBC News, news online, world, uk, international, foreign, british, online, service" /> <meta name="OriginalPublicationDate" content="2005/01/27 11:31:29" /> <meta name="UKFS_URL" content="/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4209595.stm" /> <meta name="IFS_URL" content="/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4209595.stm" /> <meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html;charset=iso-8859-1" /> <meta name="Headline" content="'Salvador Option' mooted for Iraq" /> <meta name="Section" content="From Our Own Correspondent" /> <meta name="Description" content="Tom Gibb revisits the horrors of El Salvador's civil war as it emerges some US officials are considering similar tactics in Iraq." />  <link type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" href="/css/screen/nol/story.css?v1" /> <style type="text/css" media="all"> @import "/css/screen/shared/styles.css"; @import '/css/screen/shared/toolbar_ukfs.css'; @import '/css/screen/shared/toolbar_ifs.css'; @import "/css/screen/nol/styles.css"; @import "/css/screen/nol/furniture.css"; @import "/css/screen/nol/promo.css"; @import "/css/screen/nol/programmes.css?v1"; @import "/css/screen/nol/ukfs.css"; </style> <script type="text/javascript">  </script>  <script src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/js/newsi/latest/newsi.js?9" type="text/javascript"></script>   <script type="text/javascript" src="http://www.bbc.co.uk/glow/gloader.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/js/app/shared/bbc_fmtj.js"></script> <script src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/js/app/tracker/tracker.js?v2" language="JavaScript"></script> <script src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/js/nol4.js?v2" language="JavaScript" type="text/javascript"></script> <script src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/js/livestats_v1_1.js" language="JavaScript" type="text/javascript"></script> <script src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/ukfs_news/js/av.js?v2" language="JavaScript" type="text/javascript"></script> <script src="http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/aod/radioplayer.js" type="text/javascript"></script> </head> <body marginwidth="0" topmargin="0" leftmargin="0" marginheight="0"> <a name="top" id="top"></a> <link type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" href="/css/screen/shared/v3masthead.css" />  <ul class="bbcpageHide"> <li><a href="#startcontent" accesskey="2">Skip to main content</a></li> <li><a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/text_only.stm">Low Graphics</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/accesskeys/keys.shtml" accesskey="0">Access keys help</a></li> </ul> <div id="toolbarContainer"> <table id="bbcpageToolbarTable" width="100%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0" lang="en"> <tr valign="middle"> <td width="200" id="bbcpageBlocks"><font size="2"><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/toolbar/-/home/d/" accesskey="1"><img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/v3/masthead/bbc.gif" width="77" height="22" alt="BBC" border="0" hspace="2" vspace="0" /> Home</a></font></td> <td width="295" align="right"><form method="get" action="http://www.bbc.co.uk/cgi-bin/search/results.pl" accept-charset="utf-8" class="(none)"><input type="text" id="bbcpageSearch" name="q" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" title="BBC Search" accesskey="4" /></td> <td width="105"><input type="submit" name="Search" value="Search" id="bbcpageSearchButton" /><input type="hidden" name="uri" value="/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4209595.stm" /></form></td> <td width="170" align="right" class="bbcpageorange"><font size="2" id="bbcpageExplore"><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/toolbar/-/a-z/">Explore the BBC</a></font></td> </tr> </table> </div>   <script type="text/javascript"> // <![CDATA[ function countername(u) { var countername = []; u = u.replace(/\.[^.\/]+$/, ''); u = u.replace(/[#][^#]+$/, '' ); u = u.replace(/[\?][^\?]+$/, '' ); u = u.replace(/\/newsid_\d+/g, '/'); u = u.replace(/\/[12]\//, '/'); u = u.replace(/\/reviews\//, '/'); u = u.replace(/\/sport[12]\//, '/sport/'); u = u.replace(/\/bbc_sport\//, '/sport/'); u = u.replace(/\/(hi|mobile)\//, '/'); u = u.replace(/\/(uk|i)fs\//, '/'); var path = u.split('/').slice(3); var asset_id_re = /(\d+)\/?$/; var asset_id = ''; if (matches = asset_id_re.exec( path[path.length-1] )) { asset_id = matches[1]; } var prod_name = 'news'; var prod = new Array(); prod['sport'] = /sport/; prod['weather'] = /weather/; prod['cbbc'] = /cbbc/; for (var name in prod) { if (u.match(prod[name])) { prod_name = name; break; } } countername.push(prod_name); for (var i=0; i<path.length; i++) { var part = path[i]; if (part && (part != prod_name) && (part != asset_id) && (part != 'default')) { countername.push(part); } } if (asset_id) {countername.push(asset_id);} countername.push('page'); return countername.join('.'); } function prod_name(c) {return c.replace(/^(.+?)\..*$/, "$1");} function geo_edition(u) { var geo_edition = 'uk'; if (u.match(/\/(sport2|2|ifs)\//)) { geo_edition = 'int'; } return geo_edition; } function sitestat(n){var j=document,f=j.location,b="";if(j.cookie.indexOf("st_ux=")!=-1){var k=j.cookie.split(";");var e="st_ux",h=document.domain,a="/"; if(typeof ns_!="undefined"&&typeof ns_.ux!="undefined"){e=ns_.ux.cName||e;h=ns_.ux.cDomain||h;a=ns_.ux.cPath||a}for(var g=0,f=k.length;g<f;g++){var m=k[g].indexOf("st_ux="); if(m!=-1){b="&"+unescape(k[g].substring(m+6))}}document.cookie=e+"=; expires="+new Date(new Date().getTime()-60).toGMTString()+"; path="+a+"; domain="+h}ns_pixelUrl=n; n=ns_pixelUrl+"&ns__t="+(new Date().getTime())+"&ns_c="+((j.characterSet)?j.characterSet:j.defaultCharset)+"&ns_ti="+escape(j.title)+b+"&ns_jspageurl="+escape(f&&f.href?f.href:j.URL)+"&ns_referrer="+escape(j.referrer);if(n.length>2000&&n.lastIndexOf("&")){ n=n.substring(0,n.lastIndexOf("&")+1)+"ns_cut="+n.substring(n.lastIndexOf("&")+1,n.lastIndexOf("=")).substring(0,40)}(j.images)? new Image().src=n:j.write('<p><i'+'mg src="'+n+'" height="1" width="1" alt="" /><\/p>')}; if (document.cookie.indexOf('NO-SA=') == -1) { var countername = countername(location.href), tld = prod_name(countername); sitestat("//sa.bbc.co.uk/bbc/bbc/s?name="+countername+"&ml_name=news-legacy-js&ml_version=20110330&app_type=web&app_name="+tld+"&prod_name="+tld); } // ]]> </script> <noscript><p><img src="//sa.bbc.co.uk/bbc/bbc/s?name=news.legacy.no-javascript.page&ml_name=news-legacy-js&ml_version=20110330" height="1" width="1" alt="" /></p></noscript>  <div id="ift-banner" class="ift-news"> <div id="ift-extra" style="padding:2px 0 0 0;height:1.5em;width:760px;"> <div class="fr"> <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/text_only.stm" class="extraLink" onClick="goToOtherBandwidth(this);return false;">Low graphics</a><span class="pipe">|</span><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/" class="extraLink">Accessibility help</a> </div> </div> <div class="clear"></div> </div>  <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0" width="760"> <tr> <td width="121" valign="top"> <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/"><img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/bbc_logo.gif" width="121" height="64" border="0" alt="BBC News" /></a></td> <td width="436" valign="top"> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0" width="100%"> <tr> <td valign="middle" class="banmain"> <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/check/player/nol/newsid_7350000/newsid_7352600?redirect=7352691.stm&news=1&nbram=1&bbram=1&nbwm=1&bbwm=1&asb=1" onclick="javascript:newsi.utils.av.launch({el:this});return false;"><img height="13" align="left" vspace="0" border="0" width="82" alt="Launch console" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/icons/video_live.gif" />BBC NEWS CHANNEL</a><br clear="all" /> </td> </tr> </table> </td> <td width="203" valign="top"> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0" width="100%"> <tr> <td valign="middle" class="banaddition"> <div> <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/news/int/banner/story/services/-/1/hi/help/products_and_services/default.stm"> <img height="50" hspace="0" align="right" vspace="0" border="0" width="50" alt="mobiles" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/icons/services_gen.gif" /> <b>News services</b> <br />Your news when you want it </a> <br clear="all" /> </div> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table>        <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="760"> <tr> <td width="121" valign="top"> <div class="lhs"> <div class="lhssqs"> <a href="/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/default.stm">From Our Own Correspondent</a> </div> <div class="lhsb"> <a href="/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/archive/default.stm">Archive</a> </div> <div class="lhsb"> <a href="/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/about/default.stm">About the programme</a> </div> <div class="lhsb"> <a href="/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/faqs/default.stm">FAQs</a> </div> </div>  <div class="lhsad"><script language="JavaScript">getRssUrl()</script></div> <div class="lhsad"> <div class="lhsnlp">RELATED BBC SITES</div> <ul id="lhsOtherSites"> <li><a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/default.stm" title="Home of BBC Sport on the internet" class="relatedSitesLink">SPORT</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/d/" title="Weather information from around the world" class="relatedSitesLink">WEATHER</a></li> <li><a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/default.stm" title="CBBC News" class="relatedSitesLink">CBBC NEWSROUND</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/onthisday" title="BBC On This Day" class="relatedSitesLink">ON THIS DAY</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/theeditors/" title="Editors' Blog" class="relatedSitesLink">EDITORS' BLOG</a></li> </ul> </div> </td> <td width="10"><img height="1" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="10" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" /></td> <td width="629" valign="top"> <table width="629" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tr> <td valign="top" width="629"> <a name="startcontent"></a><span class="ds"><span class="lu">Last Updated: </span>Thursday, 27 January, 2005, 11:31 GMT</span> <img height="2" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="2" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" /> <div class="mvb"><img height="1" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="629" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/dot_629.gif" /></div> <div class="mvtb"><table cellspacing="0" width="416" border="0" cellpadding="0"><tr> <td width="213"><a onClick="popUpPage('http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/email/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4209595.stm','status=no,scrollbars=yes,resizable=yes,width=370,height=445','Mailer')" href="http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/email/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4209595.stm" class="epl" target="Mailer"> <img height="11" hspace="3" align="left" vspace="0" border="0" width="17" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/email.gif" /> E-mail this to a friend </a></td> <td width="203"><a onClick="popUpPage('http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4209595.stm','status=no,scrollbars=yes,toolbar=yes,resizable=yes,menubar=yes,width=600,height=445','Printer')" href="http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4209595.stm" class="epl" target="Printer"> <img height="11" hspace="3" align="left" vspace="0" border="0" width="17" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/print.gif " /> Printable version </a></td> </tr></table></div> </td> </tr> </table> <table width="629" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tr> <td colspan="3"> <div class="mxb"> <div class="sh"> 'Salvador Option' mooted for Iraq </div> </div> </td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" width="416"> <font size="2">   <div class="mvb"> <table border="0" width="416" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tr> <td valign="bottom" width="58"><img height="55" border="0" width="58" alt="Tom Gibb" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40763000/jpg/_40763681_tom_gibb_byl58.jpg" /><br clear="all" /></td> <td> <img height="1" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="10" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" /> </td> <td valign="bottom" width="348"> <div class="mvb"> <span class="byl"> By Tom Gibb </span> <br /> <span class="byd"> BBC, South America </span> </div> </td> </tr> </table><img height="1" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="416" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/999999.gif" /><br /> </div>  <p> <B>With no end to the Iraq conflict in sight, some US military strategists have been considering tactics used during the civil war in El Salvador, a brutal and bloody campaign that lasted for years.</B> <p>  <table cellspacing="0" align="right" border="0" width="203" cellpadding="0"> <tr><td> <div> <img height="152" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="203" alt="FMLN guerrillas attack San Salvador" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40763000/jpg/_40763329_guerillas203.jpg" /> <div class="cap">More than 70,000 people died in the 12-year war</div> </div> </td></tr> </table>  The US colonel in charge at the close of El Salvador's civil war was a tall man with a shaven head, which, as a colleague put it, "looked as if it would repel cannonballs". <p> I remember him commenting on how he had been glad to serve in El Salvador because he believed the United States had corrected the mistakes of Vietnam, learning at last the formula to defeat future insurgencies. <p> This, he said, required pouring in resources to build up the local army as a shield against hostile guerrillas behind which democracy-building could work its magic. <p> He was, he said, going to write it all up in case of another such war. <p> So it has been with little surprise that I have read articles coming out of Washington in recent weeks, with US officials talking about a "Salvador Option" in Iraq, not only for democracy-building, but also for a more aggressive campaign to eliminate Iraqi insurgents and their supporters. <p><b>Brutal dictatorships </b><p> El Salvador was the last long counter-insurgency war fought by the United States. <p>  <table cellspacing="0" align="right" border="0" width="203" cellpadding="0"> <tr><td> <div> <img height="152" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="203" alt="Former US President Ronald Reagan" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40763000/jpg/_40763531_podium-ap203.jpg" /> <div class="cap">Determined to halt the spread of communism, the US took action</div> </div> </td></tr> </table>  It is one of a collection of small republics in the US backyard which, during the Cold War, Washington considered too strategically important to fall to communism. <p> For decades the US propped up brutal dictatorships. But repression created fertile ground for Marxist guerrillas. <p> So in the 1980s, the US belatedly switched to democracy-building to stop the revolutions sweeping the region. <p> President Reagan promised to draw the line against further communist expansion in El Salvador. <p> There followed a bloody 12-year stalemate between the US-funded and organised Salvadoran army, and Cuban-backed guerrillas. <p> Between one and two percent of the population - more than 70,000 people - died. <p><b>Terror tactics </b><p> I still find it extraordinary that US officials like the colonel, saw this as a success. <p>  <table cellspacing="0" align="right" border="0" width="203" cellpadding="0"> <tr><td> <div> <img height="152" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="203" alt="A memorial for the victims of El Salvador's civil war" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40763000/jpg/_40763323_memorial_victims_afp.jpg" /> <div class="cap">The suffering the Salvadoran people experienced is still felt today</div> </div> </td></tr> </table>  The shield which stopped a guerrilla victory in El Salvador was in reality a reign of terror. <p> Tens of thousands of those killed in the war were rebel sympathisers, tortured and murdered by the security forces. <p> It was a well-organised, dirty war in which the CIA was heavily involved. <p> Horrendously mutilated corpses - sometimes decapitated - were left in full public view. <p> Using fear, the policy succeeded in denying the rebels open civilian support. <p> Some in the Pentagon have now been mooting the idea of training Iraqi hit squads to target insurgents and their sympathisers to quash open civilian support for them. <p> But for this to work would mean out-terrorising the Iraqi rebels, a difficult task indeed. <p> Nor is success for a Salvador-style death squad democracy guaranteed. <p> <b>Horrific memories</b> <p> Constituent assembly elections, like those taking place in Iraq, were held in 1982. <p>  <table cellspacing="0" align="right" border="0" width="203" cellpadding="0"> <tr><td> <div> <img height="152" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="203" alt="A soldier fires a gun during an attack on San Salvador" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40763000/jpg/_40763327_2guerillas203.jpg" /> </div> </td></tr> </table>  But the war continued for another decade with the rebels rebuilding their strength. <p> In November 1989, they launched an all-out offensive to win, taking over suburbs of the capital for 10 days. <p> Fearing defeat, the US-backed army set out to kill not only guerrillas but also those they viewed as sympathisers. <p> Of the memories of death and mutilation I witnessed in El Salvador, the sight of six Jesuit priests, their cook and her 16-year-old daughter with their brains blown across the neatly cropped lawn of their house, is the one that still haunts the most. <p> They were among the country's leading intellectuals, and I knew them well. <p> They were murdered by an elite US-trained unit, part of an extermination list approved by the high command, a dirty war taken to the limit. <p> The failure of US strategy in El Salvador is perhaps measured by its inability in 12 years to capture or kill a single top guerrilla commander in a country only the size of Belgium. <p> In the end, years more bloodshed and a potentially humiliating US defeat were only prevented by the Soviet collapse, which pulled the rug from under the guerrillas' feet. <p> George Bush Snr called in the United Nations to mediate peace and sort out the mess. <p> It seems a strange model to choose now for Iraq. <p> <p> <B>From Our Own Correspondent was broadcast on Thursday, 27 January, 2005, at 1100 GMT on BBC Radio 4. Please check the programme schedules for World Service transmission times.</B> <p> </font> <br /><br clear="all" /> <div class="mvtb"><table cellspacing="0" width="416" border="0" cellpadding="0"><tr> <td width="213"><a onClick="popUpPage('http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/email/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4209595.stm','status=no,scrollbars=yes,resizable=yes,width=370,height=445','Mailer')" href="http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/email/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4209595.stm" class="epl" target="Mailer"> <img height="11" hspace="3" align="left" vspace="0" border="0" width="17" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/email.gif" /> E-mail this to a friend </a></td> <td width="203"><a onClick="popUpPage('http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4209595.stm','status=no,scrollbars=yes,toolbar=yes,resizable=yes,menubar=yes,width=600,height=445','Printer')" href="http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4209595.stm" class="epl" target="Printer"> <img height="11" hspace="3" align="left" vspace="0" border="0" width="17" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/print.gif " /> Printable version </a></td> </tr></table></div> </td> <td width="10" valign="top"><img height="1" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="10" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" /></td> <td width="203" valign="top"> <div class="puffbox"> <div class="o"> <div class="nlp"> <a class="lp" href="/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/default.stm">FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT</a> </div> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" width="1" height="5" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" class="" hspace="0"><br /> <a href="/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/default.stm"><img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/45088000/gif/_45088487_fooc_6666.gif" align="left" width="66" height="66" alt="From Our Own Correspondent graphic" border="0" vspace="3" hspace="0"></a> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" align="left" width="5" height="66" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"> <a href="/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/default.stm">Read more personal reflections from BBC correspondents around the world</a> <br clear="all" /> <div class="wideav"> <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00yp911"> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/62949000/jpg/_62949895_alan_johnston2_bbc6649.jpg" align="left" width="66" height="49" alt="Alan Johnston" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" align="left" width="5" height="49" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"> Alan Johnston in Italy<br /> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/icons/audio_text.gif" width="57" height="13" alt="listen" border="0" vspace="5" hspace="0"> </a> <br clear="all" /> </div> <div class="wideav"> <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00yp98b"> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/62949000/jpg/_62949896_kevin_connolly_bbc6649.jpg" align="left" width="66" height="49" alt="Kevin Connolly" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" align="left" width="5" height="49" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"> Kevin Connolly on intervention in Syria<br /> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/icons/audio_text.gif" width="57" height="13" alt="listen" border="0" vspace="5" hspace="0"> </a> <br clear="all" /> </div> <div class="wideav"> <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00yp9bn"> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/60244000/jpg/_60244881_microphone6649.jpg" align="left" width="66" height="49" alt="A microphone" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" align="left" width="5" height="49" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"> Jenny Cuffe in Zimbabwe<br /> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/icons/audio_text.gif" width="57" height="13" alt="listen" border="0" vspace="5" hspace="0"> </a> <br clear="all" /> </div> <div class="wideav"> <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00yp9d4"> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/62949000/jpg/_62949898_nickthorpe.jpg" align="left" width="66" height="49" alt="Nick Thorpe" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" align="left" width="5" height="49" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"> Nick Thorpe in Hungary<br /> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/icons/audio_text.gif" width="57" height="13" alt="listen" border="0" vspace="5" hspace="0"> </a> <br clear="all" /> </div> <div class="wideav"> <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00yp9dn"> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/60244000/jpg/_60244881_microphone6649.jpg" align="left" width="66" height="49" alt="A microphone" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" align="left" width="5" height="49" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"> Kieran Cooke in Ireland<br /> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/icons/audio_text.gif" width="57" height="13" alt="listen" border="0" vspace="5" hspace="0"> </a> <br clear="all" /> </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/3143512.stm">About the programme</a> </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/default.stm ">Home</a> </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/3143042.stm">FAQs</a> </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/fooc50/default.stm">Anniversary website</a> <br /> </div> <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" width="1" height="5" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" class="" hspace="0"><br />  <div class="psrhb"> <form action="http://newssearch.bbc.co.uk/cgi-bin/search/results.pl"> <input type="hidden" name="scope" value="programmesukfs" /> <input type="hidden" name="tab" value="programmes" /> <input name="section" type="hidden" value="from_our_own_correspondent" /> <div class="psrht">SEARCH FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT:</div> <input type="text" size="10" name="q" value="" class="pinp" /> <input border="0" type="image" src="/nol/shared/img/v3/go_button.gif" value="GO" /></form></div>   <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" width="1" height="5" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" class="" hspace="0"><br />  <div class="podcast2" id="pcCta"> <h2>Podcast</h2> <p class="instruct" id="pcCtaAudioAvailableTrue">Download or subscribe to this programme's podcast</p> <p class="icons"> <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/podcasts/fooc/"><img src="/nol/shared/img/podcasts/cta_w_17_noshdw.gif" border="0" alt="Podcast" width="103" height="17"/></a> <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/help/podcasts/"><img src="/nol/shared/img/podcasts/qm_w_17_noshdw.gif" border="0" alt="Help" width="19" height="17"/></a> </p> </div>  <img src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" width="1" height="5" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" class="" hspace="0"><br /> </div> <img height="10" width="1" alt="" src="/shared/img/o.gif" /><br /></div> <div class="sah"> SEE ALSO: </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/world/americas/3879373.stm"> El Salvador's suffering lingers on </a> <br /> <span class="sad"> 09 Jul 04 |  Americas </span> </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/world/americas/3110789.stm"> El Salvador 'failed child victims' </a> <br /> <span class="sad"> 30 Jul 03 |  Americas </span> </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/world/americas/2147888.stm"> El Salvador verdicts 'could open floodgates' </a> <br /> <span class="sad"> 24 Jul 02 |  Americas </span> </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/world/americas/1891145.stm"> US role in Salvador's brutal war </a> <br /> <span class="sad"> 24 Mar 02 |  Americas </span> </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/world/americas/country_profiles/1220818.stm"> Timeline: El Salvador </a> <br /> <span class="sad"> 31 Dec 04 |  Country profiles </span> </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/world/americas/country_profiles/1220684.stm"> Country profile: El Salvador </a> <br /> <span class="sad"> 16 Nov 04 |  Country profiles </span> </div> <img height="2" hspace="0" vspace="3" border="0" width="203" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/line_seealso.gif" /><br /> <img height="10" width="1" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" /><br /> <div class="nlp"> RELATED BBC LINKS: </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/specials/1731_centralamerica/page3.shtml"> El Salvador </a> </div> <img height="10" width="1" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" /><br /> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> <div id="footer1"> <div class="serviceStripStory"> <h4>PRODUCTS AND SERVICES</h4> <ul> <li><a href="http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/email/news">E-mail news</a></li> <li><a href="/1/hi/help/3304673.stm">Mobiles</a></li> <li><a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/help/4735697.stm">Alerts</a></li> <li><a href="/1/hi/help/rss/3223484.stm">News feeds</a></li> <li><a href="/1/hi/help/5092618.stm">Interactive TV</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/podcasts/directory/genre/newscurrentaffairs/">Podcasts</a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <img alt="" id="livestats" src="http://stats.bbc.co.uk/o.gif?~RS~s~RS~News~RS~t~RS~HighWeb_Legacy~RS~i~RS~4209595~RS~p~RS~0~RS~a~RS~Domestic~RS~u~RS~/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4209595.stm~RS~r~RS~(none)~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~16~RS~"/> <div class="f"> <a href="/1/hi/default.stm" class="flb">News Front Page</a> | <a href="/1/hi/world/default.stm" class="flb">World</a> | <a href="/1/hi/uk/default.stm" class="flb">UK</a> | <a href="/1/hi/england/default.stm" class="flb">England</a> | <a href="/1/hi/northern_ireland/default.stm" class="flb">Northern Ireland</a> | <a href="/1/hi/scotland/default.stm" class="flb">Scotland</a> | <a href="/1/hi/wales/default.stm" class="flb">Wales</a> | <a href="/1/hi/uk_politics/default.stm" class="flb">Politics</a> <br /> <a href="/1/hi/business/default.stm" class="flb">Business</a> | <a href="/1/hi/entertainment/default.stm" class="flb">Entertainment</a> | <a href="/1/hi/sci/tech/default.stm" class="flb">Science/Nature</a> | <a href="/1/hi/technology/default.stm" class="flb">Technology</a> | <a href="/1/hi/health/default.stm" class="flb">Health</a> | <a href="/1/hi/education/default.stm" class="flb">Education</a> <br /> <a href="/1/hi/talking_point/default.stm" class="fl">Have Your Say</a> | <a href="/1/hi/magazine/default.stm" class="fl">Magazine</a> | <a href="/1/hi/in_pictures/default.stm" class="fl">In Pictures</a> | <a href="/1/hi/week_at-a-glance/default.stm" class="fl">Week at a Glance</a> | <a href="/1/hi/country_profiles/default.stm" class="fl">Country Profiles</a> | <a href="/1/hi/in_depth/default.stm" class="fl">In Depth</a> | <a href="/1/hi/programmes/default.stm" class="fl">Programmes</a> </div> <div id="footer1"> <ul id="serviceBar"> <li class="copyright2"><div class="logo"><a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/help/3281849.stm">BBC Copyright Notice</a></div><div class="copyrightdate">MMIX</div></li> <script language="JavaScript">  </script> <noscript> <li class="footermostpop" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: none"><a href="/1/shared/bsp/hi/live_stats/html/map.stm">Most Popular Now</a> | <a href=/1/shared/bsp/hi/live_stats/html/map.stm?lsf>17,029 pages were read in the last minute.</a>";</li> </noscript> <li class="footertotop"><a href="#top">Back to top ^^</a></li> </ul> <ul id="footList"> <li><a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/help/default.stm">Help</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/privacy/">Privacy and cookies policy</a></li> <li><a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/help/3281815.stm">News sources</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/info/">About the BBC</a></li> <li><a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/newswatch/ukfs/hi/feedback/default.stm" >Contact us</a></li> </ul> </div> <map name="world_map" id="world_map"> <area alt="Americas" coords="0,0,34,53" href="/1/hi/world/americas/default.stm" /> <area alt="Africa" shape="poly" coords="37,25,37,51,52,51,52,33,48,33,48,31,40,31" href="/1/hi/world/africa/default.stm" /> <area alt="Europe" shape="poly" coords="35,2,66,2,66,12,56,12,56,20,37,20" href="/1/hi/world/europe/default.stm" /> <area alt="Middle East" shape="poly" coords="44,24,57,24,58,50,55,50,55,31,52,28,44,28" href="/1/hi/world/middle_east/default.stm" /> <area alt="South Asia" coords="60,24,67,49" href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/default.stm" /> <area alt="Asia Pacific" shape="poly" coords="71,2,89,3,88,51,69,51,69,20,62,20,62,16,71,16" href="/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/default.stm" /> </map> <br /> <script language="JavaScript">  </script> <br />  <div id="bbccomWebBug" class="bbccomWebBug"></div> <script type="text/javascript"> /*<![CDATA[*/ if (BBC.adverts.isActive('analytics')) { if (bbcdotcom && bbcdotcom.analytics) { bbcdotcom.analytics.page(); } } /*]]>*/ </script>  <script type="text/javascript"> /*<![CDATA[*/ if (BBC.adverts.isActive('nielsen-au')) {  document.write(unescape('%3Cscript type="text/javascript" src="' + ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https:' : 'http:') + '//secure-au.imrworldwide.com/v60.js"%3E%3C/script%3E')); } /*]]>*/ </script> <script type="text/javascript"> /*<![CDATA[*/ if (BBC.adverts.isActive('nielsen-au')) {  nol_t({cid:"au-bbc",content:"0",server:"secure-au"}).record().post();  } /*]]>*/ </script>   <script type="text/javascript"> /*<![CDATA[*/ if (BBC.adverts.isActive('nielsen-nz')) {  document.write(unescape('%3Cscript type="text/javascript" src="' + ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https:' : 'http:') + '//secure-nz.imrworldwide.com/v60.js"%3E%3C/script%3E')); } /*]]>*/ </script> <script type="text/javascript"> /*<![CDATA[*/ if (BBC.adverts.isActive('nielsen-nz')) { nol_t({cid:"nz-bbc",content:"0",server:"secure-nz"}).record().post(); } /*]]>*/ </script>   <script type="text/javascript"> /*<![CDATA[*/ if (BBC.adverts.isActive('nielsen-us')) {  (function () { var d = new Image(1, 1); d.onerror = d.onload = function () { d.onerror = d.onload = null; }; d.src = [('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https:' : 'http:') + "//secure-us.imrworldwide.com/cgi-bin/m?ci=us-804789h&cg=0&cc=1&si=", escape(window.location.href), "&rp=", escape(document.referrer), "&ts=compact&rnd=", (new Date()).getTime()].join(''); })(); } /*]]>*/ </script>   <script type="text/javascript"> /*<![CDATA[*/ if (BBC.adverts.isActive('analytics')) { (function() { var em = document.createElement('script'); em.type = 'text/javascript'; em.async = true; em.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://me-ssl' : 'http://me-cdn') + '.effectivemeasure.net/em.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(em, s); })(); } /*]]>*/ </script>  <br /> </body> </html>

CINXE.COM

BBC NEWS | Programmes | From Our Own Correspondent | 'Salvador Option' mooted for Iraq