The southern Iraq city of Samawah is safe and is in need of humanitarian assistance, the Defense Agency said Friday in summarizing a report submitted by a fact-finding team sent to assess security conditions in the country.
Samawah is the candidate site for a planned deployment of Ground Self-Defense Force troops to support Iraq's reconstruction efforts.
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi told reporters later in the day that dispatching SDF units is possible, judging from the team's report and the Defense Agency's comprehensive assessment of the security situation.