Duhok, Iraq Press, Jan. 30 - Military units from the elite force of the Republican Guards have been redeployed in areas south of the Kurdish-held city of Duhok, residents said.

They said troops were ferried to areas around the government-controlled city of Mosul, bordering the semi-independent Kurdish enclave.

They said thousands of soldiers backed up with tanks; armored personnel carriers and heavy artillery were seen digging up positions in and around Mosul in the past two days.

Military hardware was also moved to Fayda, just south of the provincial borders of Duhok, and close to the Syrian border, they added.

The latest military build-up has caused concern in Kurdish ranks. 

Massoud Barzani of the Kurdistan Democratic Party is reported to have placed his militias under full alert and deployed battalions of his fighters in areas facing the Iraqi guards.

Barzani shares control of the enclave with Jalal Talabani of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan. U.S. and British warplanes police a no-fly zone over Kurdish areas to deter Iraqi President Saddam Hussein from using force against rebel Kurds.

It is Iraq's second massive deployment along Kurdish areas in two months. 

Despite its latest peaceful overtures, Baghdad still views itself as a possible target in the U.S.-led war effort against international terrorism.

President Bush has warned Saddam of unspecified consequences if he does not let U.N. weapons inspectors back into the country.

The inspectors left Iraq late in 1988 and Baghdad has vowed not allow them resume their activities again.