Experts say U.S. `discovery' of nuclear materials in Iraq was breach of U.N.-monitored site

Associated Press ^ | 4-10-03 | WILLIAM J. KOLE

[Oldeconomybuyer]

VIENNA, Austria (AP) -- American troops who suggested they uncovered evidence of an active nuclear weapons program in Iraq unwittingly may have stumbled across known stocks of low-grade uranium, officials said Thursday. They said the U.S. troops may have broken U.N. seals meant to keep control of the radioactive material.

[k2blader]

Bump!

[mewzilla]

But an expert familiar with U.N. nuclear inspections told The Associated Press that it was implausible to believe that U.S. forces had uncovered anything new at the site. Instead, the official said, the Marines apparently broke U.N. seals designed to ensure the materials aren't diverted for weapons use -- or end up in the wrong hands.

You notice that AP doesn't name the guy....

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[MEG33]

Squirm ,worm!

[billorites]

Hans is going to be vewy, vewy angry.

[spokeshave]

Someone needs a Nobel prize for physics/chemistry as they have plutonium spontaniously changing to "low-grade uranium" .../sarcasm

[Billthedrill]

David Kay, a former IAEA chief nuclear inspector, said Thursday that the teams he oversaw after the 1991 Gulf War never found an underground site at Tuwaitha despite persistent rumors.

...but the other, unnamed individual claims that the Marines "must" have broken UN seals...and guess who made the headline? Well, this one will be fairly easy to sort out. We'll see.

[riri]

If anyone cannot see the monster that the UN in the making that the UN was/is they are not looking very closely. Question remains are we going to destroy the monster before another Clinton globalist type takes over the Whitehouse again?

[jwalsh07]

"What happened apparently was that they broke IAEA seals, which is very unfortunate because those seals are integral to ensuring that nuclear material doesn't get diverted," the expert said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Expert BS artist. He doesn't have any idea what happened there, where they looked or what they found. None, nadda, zippo!

[Born in a Rage]

The Iraqis were allowed to keep the material because it was unfit for weapons use without costly and time-consuming enrichment.

I think what they mean is that Saddam was allowed to keep the materials so that he and/or others could use it at some point in the future when they wanted to.

[Dane]

IAEA Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei, clearly wary of any coalition claims, said this week that any alleged discoveries of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq would have to be verified by U.N. inspectors "to generate the required credibility."

ElBaradei said the inspectors should return as soon as possible, subject to Security Council guidance, to resume their search for banned arms

Is it possible to put the above passage into a Thesaurus next to the term "job security"?

[Ruth A.]

Just try to blame it on the marines. Yeah, that's a real smart move.

[Oldeconomybuyer]

U.N. teams probe deeper into nuclear complex (FLASHBACK)

Underground Nuclear Facility Found in Iraq

Marines hold Iraqi nuclear site built by French

U.S. Marines Guard Secret Iraqi City with Very Hot Nuclear Radiation Levels

[Oldeconomybuyer]

Agree. This article is poorly sourced.

[arkady_renko]

So... I'm confused. Are the UN guys leaking that they knew about some of the radioactive materials? Did they know about the underground facility or not? More questions than answers. Anyone help me out here?

A_R

[Not Insane]

__ElBaradei said the inspectors should return as soon as possible, subject to Security Council guidance, to resume their search for banned arms.__

I thought that wasn't their job. How can they "resume" something they were never doing?

[Dark Wing]

A "You are not going to believe this!" ping!

[Born in a Rage]

...but the other, unnamed individual claims that the Marines "must" have broken UN seals

....and why should we care if they did? How can we trust the UN or UN inspectors?

[Not Insane]

Yes, and how does it wash with this:

"But underground facilities by definition are very hard to detect," he said. "When you inspect a place so often, you get overconfident about what you know. It would have been very easy for the inspectors to explain away any excessive radiation at Tuwaitha. The Iraqis could have hidden something clandestine in plain sight."