Posted on 07/07/2004 11:52:55 AM PDT by BMC1
The United States government says it secretly removed more than 1.7 tonnes of enriched uranium and other radioactive materials from Iraq that could potentially be used to manufacture a "dirty" radiological bomb or support a nuclear weapons program.
The move came ahead of the June 28 handover of power from the US-led coalition of occupying powers to Iraq's interim government now formally charged with running the country while trying stamp out an escalating insurgency.
"This operation was a major achievement for the Bush administration's goal to keep potentially dangerous nuclear materials out of the hands of terrorists," Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham said in a statement today.
"It also puts this material out of reach for countries that may seek to develop their own nuclear weapons."
The operation, which took place last month, involved 20 US nuclear experts from of the Energy Department's secret laboratories and an undisclosed number of US troops.
Working at Iraq's former nuclear complex, the team packaged the low-enriched uranium and roughly 1,000 other highly radioactive devices, loaded them on a military plane and hauled them to the United States on June 23.
The enriched uranium will be stored temporarily at an undisclosed Department of Energy facility, while the devices will be further examined at a US government laboratory, officials said.
The department said the operation was consistent with "relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions" and aimed to "ensure the safety and security of the Iraqi people."
Radiological sources that could be used for medical, agricultural or industrial purposes have been repackaged but have not been removed, the officials said.
The International Atomic Energy Agency and Iraqi officials were briefed in advance about US plans.
The nuclear research complex at al-Tuwaitha, southeast of Baghdad, played a key role in an Iraqi drive to illicitly build nuclear weapons prior to the 1991 Gulf War.
It was dismantled in the early 1990s under UN ceasefire resolutions ordering Iraq to abandon its quest for weapons of mass destruction.
1.7 tons is not enough or perhaps it's old! It doesn't matter if we found wmd that covered California, it's either not enough or old.
It's way more than enough for me....
Sigh......
1) It's not WMD
2) It's "old" in the sense that the IAEA knew about it, went to inspect it twice a year, and placed it under seal, for many years before Gulf War II. The Iraqis were specifically allowed to have it.
BTW, I'm not really a WMD sceptic. But I believe that the drums of pesticide found hidden in arms bunkers are a lot closer to actual prohibited weapons (just pour into artillery shells) and have no innocent explanation (did Iraq really have problems with insects eating its ammunition?)
Did you go to see "F911" and then rent "Triumph of the Will" on rental just for old times sake? Do you play CD's of Wagner in the morning just to get in the mood? Do you pine for the good old days of Saddam's rule?
Were they allowed to inspect it after 1998 ?
but why secretly??
why..when they found it...did they not drop the news..that would be a smoking gun for sure.
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