ABC News - IAEA Says only 3 tons of high explosives left at Al QaQuaa when last checked

ABC World News Tonight | 10/27/2004 | Martha Radditz

[hadrian]

I looked to see if anyone else had posted this - I apologize if I missed it - about 8 minutes into ABC World News Tonight, Martha Radditz ended up her report on the missing explosives with words to this effect:

Peter, late breaking information from IAEA is that when they last inspected the Al QAQaa facility in (January? March?) 2003, there were not 180 tons of high explosives, but only 3 tons.

She did qualify that I think by stating a particular type of high explosive - either MX(?) or the other of the two types, but whatever it was, sounds like there might have been a lot less left to be "missing" at any time the US forces could have been there.

[traderrob6]

Bringing you up to speed.....it's the amount left after the last IAEA inspection, not post invasion

[bushisdamanin04]

I don't trust any of these international/UN organizations. I think most, if not all, are untrustworthy. The fact that Kerry wants to put our fate in them is unthinkable.

[television is just wrong]

ok. I'm confused, but I know our troops wouldn't screw up.

[Chode]

i can't quote exact numbers but that's what i thought i heard... it didn't run at the top of this hour, i'll post the numbers if i hear them again

[CyberAnt]

This is hysterical .. these clowns actually think we are blind to what they're doing ..?? The MSM (and the UN) got away with lying and corruption for so many years and they still haven't figured out EVERYTHING HAS CHANGED.

ROTFLOL!! THIS IS WAY TOO FUNNY.

[tapatio]

Just listened to ABC news at 9 pm on the radio.This is what they said.Martha Radditz(sp?) said that there was a big discrepancy between what the Iraqi said was there in March 2002 140 tons and what the IAEA say was there in Jan 2003 3 tons. They were talking about RDX.

[kmm526161]

ABC Radio anchor just reported of Radich confidential memo re: discrepancies in amounts between two sources.

Iraqi government source says, "141 Tons RDX in July, 2002" audit ...
IAEA source says was down to, "3 tons in January, 2003" audit.

[nopardons]

bttt

[mplsconservative]

"I agree with your counterpoint about "SETUP", unless it's a team of time-staggered postings knowing what must be done for enough of us to run with it. You know -- conspiracy.

That said, I have no problems with this as long as it's stays within the Freep thread, UNTIL VERIFIED."

You joined FR all of two hours ago.

Been a lurker for awhile?

Just wondered because your 'conspiracy theory' strikes me as...oh, what is the word.....hmmmmm.

[mcg1969]

It is known that the IAEA did not verify the RDX on their last trip in March---only the HMX. The last time they verified both was in January. So it is entirely possible for the RDX to have been shipped out even before their last visit.

I have a suspicion that the "3 tons" number may have been the amount of the lesser of the two explosives, not the total amount.

I missed ABC News here unforutnately---it is on at 5:30.

[traderrob6]

ok hadrian you were close. So if i got this right, now there saying that there were just a small amount of RDX 6600# at the IAEA last inspection and roughly 180 tons of HX

[mcg1969]

Oops, nevermind, I'm reading more of the confirmations now. It looks like we're talking about general discrepancies in the accounting.

Still, this is big news. If the 140 tons of RDX was down to 3 tons by January 2003, it basically establishes a pattern of Saddam removing explosives from the site. Then it becomes far too plausible for the MSM to ignore (yeah, right) that he is responsible for the removal of the rest.

Add the satellite photos of trucks leaving the Al Qaqaa area that the Defense Department is thinking about releasing, and it looks like we're done.

As for why ABC would be eager to release this---my guess is it's predatory, an opportunity to show up their rivals. They had no trouble slamming CBS on Rathergate either.

[hadrian]

This is from the NY times article : http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/25/international/middleeast/25bomb.html?ex=1099368000&en=9ce7b708a2986170&ei=5065&partner=MYWAY

and shows the 141 metric tons of RD and 194 metric tons of HMX in 2002, along with 6 tons of other (totaling 341 metric tons or roughly 376 "normal" tons)

[sdpatriot]

yes... and the stupid UN inspectors were doing nothing about the weapons disapearing..

or were they getting a cut? Ritter - ching ching..

[traderrob6]

Da&% right this is big news, this story is falling apart piece by piece, sKerry is going to come out of this thing looking extremely foolish. This thing is unraveling and Skerry is going to have a very difficult time defending his prior statements and criticisms of W

[kerryusama04]

I'm new, but 3 tons or 180 tons, if this stuff is so darn potent, wouldn't that amount constitute wmd? What else can you use this stuff for?

[traderrob6]

WMD = biological, toxic gas, nuclear....everything else= coventional

[hadrian]

That document I just posted is the basis for Kerry's claims that 380 tons are "missing"; if ABC reports are true [no, the veracity of them hasn't been verified yet), it shows that as of Jan 2003 - 3 months before US troops were there - at least about 40% of the total was already "missing"

[cgk]

Yes, they've forgotten how much has changed with this little thing the internet now involved also. It takes FReepers 4.7 seconds to find the facts to dispute their claims these days.

[TeleStraightShooter]

Only 3 tons?
Sandy Berger could have smuggled that out in his pants!
;^>

Seriously though, I thonk this conforms earlier report that Saddam had moved the RDX for other puropses.

Now if it turns out that the other stuff was moved....