IRAQ'S GOVERNING COUNCIL ACTIVITIES.

Amid the intense scrutiny of the world and the daily bloodshed across Iraq, the council was taking the first confident steps toward what is hoped to be a transition to democracy.

The body - comprised of prominent Iraqis from all walks of political and religious life - announced the delegation it was sending to the United Nations would ''assert and emphasize the role of the governing council as a legitimate Iraqi body during this transitional period.''

Ever since Saddam's U.N. Ambassador, Mohammed Al-Douri, left New York on April 11, Iraqi diplomats have kept a very low profile at the United Nations. Al-Douri did not resign and Iraq's U.N. Mission remains open, with the former third-ranking diplomat, Said Shihab Ahmad, in charge.

On Monday, the Iraqi governing council also formed three committees to outline an order of business for the coming weeks and work out organizational issues, said Hoshyar Zebari, a spokesman for the council. The council had planned to select a leader, but Zebari said that would be done later.