Posted on 12/19/2005 3:04:06 PM PST by blam
US sets Saddam's scientists free
Huda Ammash was educated in the US
Eight former aides to Saddam Hussein - including two women accused of making biological weapons - have been released from US custody in Iraq.
The freed detainees no longer pose a security threat, a US spokesman said.
They include Huda Salih Mahdi Ammash, nicknamed by the US "Mrs Anthrax" and Rihab Taha, also known as "Dr Germ".
Reports have been circulating of a pre-election deal to free former regime figures in order to appease Iraq's Sunni Arabs, correspondents say.
A US military spokesman in Baghdad said eight detainees "were released as part of an ongoing process for many months in full consultation with the Iraqi government".
"Many were originally held as suspects in possible war crimes and as material witnesses," the spokesman said.
They were released over the weekend after nearly three years in detention.
They have been flown to Jordan, reportedly because of fears for their safety in Iraq, where many former regime figures have been assassinated.
Weapons programme
The British-educated Dr Taha and US-educated Mrs Ammash had both been accused by the Bush administration of involvement in Saddam Hussein's banned weapons programme.
Neutralising the threat posed by the former leader's chemical and biological weapons was cited by the US as its prime motive for invading Iraq in 2003.
No such weapons have been found since the invasion.
While the US military maintains only eight figures from Saddam Hussein's government have been released, an Iraqi official quoted by the Associated Press news agency said some 24 prisoners had been set free.
Aseel Tabra, an Iraqi Olympic Committee official and Hossam Mohammed Amin, head of the weapons inspections directorate, are among those released, according to the official quoted by the agency.
Iraq Scud boss poisoned
The Sun ^ | March 1, 2003 | GEORGE PASCOE-WATSON
Posted on 02/28/2003 5:59:05 PM PST by MadIvan
SADDAM Hussein’s top missile expert has been murdered to stop him blabbing to the UN.
General Muhammad Sa’id al Darraj died on Thursday after Saddam’s men poisoned his drink.
Relatives say he was ordered to hide details of Iraqi Scuds from the UN — but devious Saddam did not trust him.
The revelation came as President Bush warned war was imminent.
He said Saddam would be forced to give up his weapons — whatever the UN decided. He added: “If he had any intention of disarming, he would have disarmed. We will disarm him now.”
Bush called war the “last option” but said Americans fully understood an attack may be launched soon.
He added: “I’ve thought long and hard about the consequences and the price that could be paid.”
His comments came as UN chief weapons inspector Hans Blix said Iraq was expected to start destroying its outlawed Al Samoud 2 missiles on Saturday.
The rockets can carry chemical and biological warheads and travel more than 90 miles — the maximum range laid down by the UN.
General al-Darraj was murdered hours before Saddam agreed to the destruction. The engineer had been called to a meeting at one of Saddam’s palaces for talks about how to mislead UN scientists over Iraq’s Scud programme.
Moments before he died, he managed to tell his family Saddam’s officials had spiked his drink with poison.
British intelligence chiefs said the murder was another example of Saddam’s ruthlessness.
They said it underlined his total disregard for human rights.
Saddam had his own son-in-law assassinated when he exposed the tyrant’s weapons of mass destruction.
(Excerpt) Read more at thesun.co.uk ...
FEBRUARY 13, 2005 : (IRAQ : IRAQI SCIENTIST IS ABDUCTED, IS KILLED DURING RESCUE ATTEMPT) An Iraqi scientist died in a shoot-out between gunmen and police in Al-Karkh as the police tried to rescue him from a gang of kidnappers, Al-Sharqiyah TV reported on 13 February. The Interior Ministry said the gunmen were later arrested and were found to members of a gang specialized in abducting and assassinating Iraqi scientists and university professors. ----- "Scientist dies in shoot-out, gang captured," (Al-Sharqiyah, Baghdad, in Arabic 13 Feb 05) via IRAQI NEWS, 13 Feb 05 via http://64.233.179.104/search?q=cache:pmmX55CCgjMJ:www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/iraq/2005/02/imm-050214-unami.htm+%22iraqi+scientist%22+escape&hl=en
https://twitter.com/alimhaider/status/403808448988463104/photo/1
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Dr. Germ ... such a kidder pic.twitter.com/UdPEFrbdDS
12:53 AM - 22 Nov 13
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