Thousands of sacked Iraqi soldiers swarmed angrily around U.S. headquarters in Baghdad on Monday, as squabbling tribal leaders told the Americans they could face war if they did not leave soon.

"The entire Iraqi people is a time bomb that will blow up in the Americans' face if they don't end their occupation," tribal chief Riyadh al-Asadi said after meeting a U.S. official for talks on the future of Iraq after Saddam Hussein.

"The Iraqi people did not fight the Americans during the war, only Saddam's people did. But if the people decide to fight them now, they are in big trouble."

As tribal leaders met representatives of the U.S-led Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA), more than 3,000 sacked troops marched on the CPA headquarters in a former presidential palace, vowing violence unless they received compensation. Many said they wanted U.S. and British forces to leave Iraq.

"All of us will become suicide bombers," said former officer Khairi Jassim. "I will turn my six daughters into bombs to kill the Americans."

Paul Bremer, the U.S. administrator for Iraq, dissolved Saddam's armed forces, several security bodies and the defense and information ministries last month, firing 400,000 people. Many protesters said they could no longer feed their families.

The protesters dispersed after they were promised talks on Tuesday to try to resolve their grievances. Bremer told a news conference he sympathized with their plight and planned job creation schemes, but would not be swayed by threats.

"We're not going to be blackmailed into producing (job) programs because of threats of terrorism," he said, adding that the demonstration marked the first time in decades that people had dared to protest outside the presidential palace.

'STAY UNTIL JOB IS DONE'

Responding to the mounting calls to leave, Bremer said: "We will stay until the job is done and not a day longer."

The new United Nations special representative for Iraq, Sergio Vieira de Mello, arrived in Baghdad to beef up the U.N. role in rebuilding Iraq.

"We have a huge task ahead," he told reporters, saying the world body would be "an independent partner of the Iraqi people first and foremost, but partner of the Authority as well."

U.S. officials announced at the weekend that the Iraqi interim administration that will help guide the country until a constitution is approved and democratic elections held would be appointed by the CPA.

Previously, it had been expected a national conference of Iraqis would select the members of the administration.

U.S. officials unveiled the new plan Sunday to leaders of seven major Iraqi political groups. The groups met Monday to discuss their response and are due to see Bremer Friday.

Hamid al-Bayati of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq said the seven groups still wanted a national conference to pick a political council.

Bremer said the process of setting up an Iraqi interim administration would involve constant input from Iraqis. He said the process would take five to six weeks.

Food rations were distributed Monday for the first time since the war, but many Iraqis complained the ration packs did not contain as much as they had hoped for.

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