Did they even read the Deulfer report?

By RICHARD SPERTZEL Mr. Spertzel, head of the biological-weapons section of Unscom from 1994-99, just returned from Iraq, where he has been a member of the Iraq Survey Group (ISG). The Wall Street Journal October 14, 2004; Page A18

After the release of the Iraq Survey Group's Duelfer report, the headlines blazed "No WMD Found." Most stories continued by saying that Iraq did not constitute an imminent threat to the U.S. and thus the U.S. was wrong to eliminate that threat. This reflects the notion that Iraq was only a threat if it had military munitions filled with WMD. The claim "Iraq was not an imminent threat" was also expounded by pundits that seemingly crawled out of the woodwork as well as those opposed to President Bush. But have these individuals read carefully the report before engaging in such anti-Bush rhetoric?

* * * While no facilities were found producing chemical or biological agents on a large scale, many clandestine laboratories operating under the Iraqi Intelligence Services were found to be engaged in small-scale production of chemical nerve agents, sulfur mustard, nitrogen mustard, ricin, aflatoxin, and other unspecified biological agents. These laboratories were also evaluating whether various poisons would change the texture, smell or appearance of foodstuffs. These aspects of the ISG report have been ignored by the pundits and press. Did these constitute an imminent threat? Perhaps it depends how you define "threat."

The chemical section reports that the M16 Directorate "had a plan to produce and weaponize nitrogen mustard in rifle grenades and a plan to bottle sarin and sulfur mustard in perfume sprayers and medicine bottles which they would ship to the United States and Europe." Are we to believe this plan existed because they liked us? Or did they wish to do us harm? The major threat posed by Iraq, in my opinion, was the support it gave to terrorists in general, and its own terrorist activity.

The ISG was also told that "ricin was being developed into stable liquid to deliver as an aerosol" in various munitions. Such development was not just for assassination. If Iraq was successful in developing an aerosolizable ricin, it made a significant step forward. The development had to be for terrorist delivery. Even on a small scale this must be considered as a WMD.

Biological agents, delivered on a small scale (terrorist delivery) can maim or kill a large number of people. The Iraqi Intelligence organizations had a history of conducting tests on humans with chemical and biological substances that went beyond assassination studies. While many of these were in the 1970s and 1980s, multiple documents and testimony indicate that such testing continued through the 1990s and into the next millennium, perhaps as late as 2002. Do we wait until such weapons are used against our domestic population before we act? Is that the way that some people wish to have the U.S. protected from terrorist activity?

It is asserted that Iraq was not supporting terrorists. Really? Documentation indicates that Iraq was training non-Iraqis at Salman Pak in terrorist techniques, including assassination and suicide bombing. In addition to Iraqis, trainees included Palestinians, Yemenis, Saudis, Lebanese, Egyptians and Sudanese.

As for the U.N. inspection system preventing such R&D, why did Iraq not declare these clandestine laboratories to Unscom and Unmovic and why did these inspection agencies not discover these laboratories? Might it have been that there were multiple informants working inside Unscom and Unmovic that kept the Iraqi Intelligence Service informed as to what sites were to be inspected? Information collected by ISG indicates that this was the case. In late 2002 and early 2003, equipment and materials were removed from several sites 24 hours before U.N. inspections. Such informants were said to be active since 1993. Ergo, no surprise inspections.

Furthermore, sanctions were rapidly eroding. Unscom was aware of this erosion but not to the degree that apparently developed post 1998. The accounts of bribery of officials from several countries that were pushing for lifting or weakening sanctions are legend and have been extensively reported this past week. Inspections can not be effective without the full support of the U.N. Security Council. Such full support did not exist from late 1996 onward. Perhaps, now we know why. Iraq exploited the power of wealth in the form of oil to buy influence in the Security Council and within governments throughout the World. This has now been well documented.

Was Iraq an imminent threat? With the regime's intention and the activity of its intelligence organizations, and with the proven futility of uncovering its clandestine laboratory operations by the U.N. inspectors, it is hard to draw any other conclusion. Regretfully, terrorism is the wave of the future. The report by Charles Duelfer is unclassified and makes very interesting reading for those who really want to know. For those with a closed mind, it will be a waste of time.

Mr. Spertzel, head of the biological-weapons section of Unscom from 1994-99, just returned from Iraq, where he has been a member of the Iraq Survey Group (ISG).

URL for this article: http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB109770814784244752,00.html

2 posted on 10/15/2004 1:34:27 PM PDT by saveliberty (Liberal= in need of therapy, but would rather ruin lives of those less fortunate to feel good)

Unfortunately, the majority of Americans want their
news in 30 second sound bites. Get the meat and potatoes of the story out in front and leave the details for the more educated/interested reader. The liberal press is good
at slanted sound bites; and, of course, that's about the extent of their reporters' capabilities, anyway.

4 posted on 10/15/2004 1:36:06 PM PDT by mattdono ("Crush the democrats, drive them before you, and hear the lamentations of the scumbags" -Big Arnie)

5 posted on 10/15/2004 1:42:01 PM PDT by Conspiracy Guy (Ignorance, bigotry, envy, and gluttony are floor joists in the democratic platform.)

If I were to let loose the rabid, angry scream lurking around in my gut, they'd think I was mad... I am SO PISSED OFF that the report has been this badly spun out of reality.

I posted the excerpts from the Duelfer Report that contained this information on Free Republic the day after the report became available. I guess it takes even "friendly" media, like the WSJ, some two weeks to take notice. Even more disturbing are photographs in the report that show large piles of perfume atomizers that were to be filled with Sarin produced at these Iraqi Intelligence Agency labs. I tried to post the photos, but was not able to take them from the on-line source.

Extremely interesting!!
Liberal have staked so much on the "No WMD/No threat" Iraq angle that they have to completely ignore such reports. If they didn't their credibility, or what's left of it, would be totally destroyed. The UNSCOM report cited many instances of possible WMD evidence. Never-mind the WMD munitions that were found in Iraq, the truck load of WMD in Syria and the equipment found in Iraq that could be used to make a nuclear weapon. Saddam WAS seeking nuclear material from Africa. This latest report is merely confirmation of what we already knew.
Liberals simply cannot be trusted with the defense of this country.

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