Informer affirms 'secret weapon'

Washington Times ^ | Dec. 7 | Con Coughlin

[AndyObermann]

BAGHDAD -- An Iraqi colonel has revealed how he passed top-secret information to British intelligence warning that Saddam Hussein had deployed weapons of mass destruction that could be used on the battlefield against coalition troops in less than 45 minutes.

[DesertDreamer]

ping

[Conservativegreatgrandma]

bttt

[Johnny Gage]

Upon hearing this information, Sen. Tom Daschle was quoted as saying,

"I am deeply saddened at this revelation, but we continue to maintain that Bush has no mandate to go to war with Iraq"

[RandallFlagg]

OK, FReepers. This is the fourth story all from different media outlets. What's going on?

[NY.SS-Bar9]

Perhaps they had these:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1035688/posts

[PISANO]

Free Republic-Washington Times and Fox News Banner......that's it folks!! Unless I am mistaken, and I hope I am, you will NOT see this in the MAINSTREAM media.

[Cicero]

Right. I may have missed it, but I believe this has only been reported in the Telegraph (UK) and the Washington Times, two honest conservative outlets. I can't vouch for TV because I never watch it. But permit me to doubt that the talking heads have picked up this story, or that the NY SLIMES and WASHINGTON COMPOST will report it. Or Time or NewsWeak. US NEWS, maybe.

It's hard to conclude anything but that the liberal media are filled with deliberate congenital liars and traitors to their country. It goes far beyond any kind of unconscious bias.

[Sabertooth]

The devices, which were known by Iraqi officers as "the secret weapon," were made in Iraq and designed to be launched by hand-held rocket-propelled grenades. They could also have been launched sooner than the 45 minutes claimed in the dossier, he said.

"Forget 45 minutes," said Col. al-Dabbagh. "We could have fired these within half an hour."

If true, I'd guess these were chem weapons, probably Saddam's VX or mustard, which would have been the most useful in the battlefield.

Local commanders were told that they could use the weapons only on the personal orders of Saddam. "We were told that when the war came we would only have a short time to use everything we had to defend ourselves, including the secret weapon," he said.

The only reason they were not used, Col. al-Dabbagh said, was because the bulk of the Iraqi army did not want to fight for Saddam. "The West should thank God that the Iraqi army decided not to fight," he said.

Col. al-Dabbagh, who was recalled to Baghdad to work at Iraq's air defense headquarters during the war itself, believes the weapons of mass destruction have been hidden at secret locations by the Fedayeen and are still in Iraq. "Only when Saddam is caught will people talk about these weapons," he said.

Combine hierarchical paralysis, led by a despotic military buffoon, with great psyops, and you're going to get an opponent without the will to fight.

[syriacus]

Thanks for posting this. I heard a short mention of it earlier today, but wanted more information.

The story seems to be popping up here and there. For example Blair gets reprieve after Iraqi Col's revelations on WMDs
Vijay Dutt London, December 7

A revelation by an Iraqi Colonel that Saddam Hussain did possess WMDs that could have been launched within 45 minutes could prove to be the oxygen Tony Blair needs to stave off his political demise, predicted by many by the end of January.

The Colonel has also revealed that he passed on the information to the British Intelligence, on the basis of which the controversial dossier on Iraq's WMDs was prepared and presented to Parliament by Blair.

"It is 100 per cent accurate", he told the Sunday Telegraph.

This admission is crucial. Lord Hutton is preparing his report on the circumstances that led to the suicide by David Kelly, the scientific adviser to the Defence Ministry. Many believe that he committed suicide because the dossier was "sexed up" with false claim and he was accused of telling this to a BBC correspondent.

But now, the Colonel's admission of passing the information to British intelligence could help Blair escape scathing criticism in Hutton report. A source said that the revelation could be a new evidence for Hutton inquiry. It is significant that the Colonel has offered to travel to London to appear before lord Hutton.

Lt Col Al-Dabbagh, who was head of an Iraqi air defence unit in the western desert, has told the Sunday Telegraph that cases containing WMD warheads were delivered to the frontline units, including his own, towards the end of the last year.

These WMDs were to be used by Saddam's Fedayeen paramilitaries and units of the Special Republican Guard when the war with the coalition troops reached a "critical stage". The Colonel further revealed that the containers that came from various factories on the outskirts of Baghdad were delivered to the army by the Fedayeen.

The devices, which were made in Iraq, were designed to be used by hand-held rocket propelled grenades.

The devices were to be used only on the personal orders of Saddam Hussain. The Colonel said the reason that the weapons were not used was that the bulk of the Iraqi army did not wish to fight. The west should thank god for it, he added, for if they were used consequences would have been terrible.

He said that the weapons are still in Iraq. They were hidden by Fedayeen. The Colonel believes these locations could be revealed only after Saddam Hussain's capture.

Interesting that, meanwhile, Card is downplaying the importance of pre-war intelligence, saying the mass graves were proof enough that Saddam would use such weapons.

Card Calls Prewar Intelligence Woes 'Moot'

[VOA]

Sidebar note:
At least this made it onto NBC Nightly News (Saturday, 11-6-03).
IMHO, the weekend edition of NBC Nightly News has at least tried to be
"fair-and-balanced" in reporting Iraqi theater news.

[hosepipe]

[ It's hard to conclude anything but that the liberal media are filled with deliberate congenital liars and traitors to their country. It goes far beyond any kind of unconscious bias. ]

right...-AND- various "conservatives" are calling Ann Coulters book TREASON-->> hyperbole... when they know full well it is'nt... it is'nt even "over the top" as they say... If anything its a call to redraw the perimeter... the fox is and HAS been in the henhouse... and with a republican congress and president the fox is also contained and surrounded with the door wide open and is being invited to LEAVE UNTOUCHED!... just don't kill any more chickens, PLEASE!.. both the fox and any onlookers like me have their mouths agape at the stupidity of it all. Brittany Spears would have more sense at animal husbandry than that...

UNLESS- the fox is not only in the henhouse but the weasles in the farm house are conspiring together... to share the chickens... /metaphore.