Posted on 03/28/2003 6:26:54 AM PST by kattracks
US says Iraq may have chemical arms "trigger line"
AS SAYLIYA CAMP, Qatar, March 28 (Reuters) - A U.S. general said on Friday Iraq may have prepared its forces to use chemical weapons if invaders push beyond a certain line, although he had seen no signs the final order to use poison gas had been given.
"We have seen indications through a variety of sources and reporting means that first orders have been given that at a certain point chemical weapons might be used," U.S. Brigadier General Vincent Brooks told a news conference at the U.S.-led war headquarters in the Gulf state of Qatar.
But he added: "I have not seen anything that says that an order has been given to fire. We know that the capability does indeed exist, we know that the will exists and we are taking this very, very seriously."
The United States went to war to rid Iraq of chemical and biological weapons. President Saddam Hussein used chemical weapons against Iraq's Kurdish minority in 1988. He did not use them during the 1991 Gulf War and denies possessing them now.
The U.S. military has said it fears Saddam might order his forces to use chemical weapons if U.S.-led forces get close to his capital Baghdad.
"There might be trigger lines that are out there or places at which the regime would feel threatened enough that they would use (chemical weapons) and, as we add the additional evidence we have found on the battlefield, we begin to take that very seriously," Brooks said.
"We've seen chemical protective equipment in a number of areas south of where we thought that red line might be."
Iraq says having protective suits is a natural precaution.
"We expect the aggressors to use anything, we don't rule out that in their depression at being vanquished, those losers will become hysterical and commit even more folly," Information Minister Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf said on Friday.
The threat of chemical weapons strikes has frightened some of Iraq's neighbours, especially Kuwait, which is in range of Iraqi medium-range missiles.
Brooks said a total of 12 medium-range missiles had been fired toward Kuwait from Iraq, but all those considered "threatening" had been intercepted by U.S. Patriot anti-missile defences.
"I don't think we know exactly how many launchers the Iraqis have of any particular family of weapons systems. Only the Iraqis really know," he said. "Is there an intent to continue a threat to neighbouring countries? Absolutely."
Under U.N. sanctions, Iraq was forced to give up longer-ranged missiles like the Scuds that reached Israel in 1991. But Brooks said Iraq may have longer-range missiles than permitted.
"Because of the development of expanded-range weapons systems by the Iraqis...we believe that Iraq still poses a threat to many of its neighbours by way of missiles," he said.
03/28/03 09:10 ET
There have been 3 reports that they or munitions believed to contain them have been found, a Jerusalem Post report a few days ago that a camoflagued chemical plant had them (later amended to that the plant appeared to be abandoned), a CBN (Pat Robertson, not "Ya der hey") report 2 days ago that the 3rd Infantry found some Russian chemical shells (not confirmed by anyone else despite a search by, among others, Sean Hannity), and a report by the (London) Daily Telegraph that dozens of chemical shells were found by the British (other sources didn't mention the shells, and UK Defence Minister Geoff Hoon backed away from another element of that report).
All 3 reports appear to have been at best premature.
It would make sense to not necessarily report it widely at this point. The forces in-country are already taking all the necessary precautions, and like I said, they could easily be empty.
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