Posted on 01/26/2006 11:56:46 AM PST by French_for_Bush
Edited on 01/26/2006 12:02:58 PM PST by Admin Moderator. [history]
Iraq Official: Saddam Moved WMD to Syria
The former number two official in Saddam Hussein's Iraqi air force claims the former Iraqi dictator moved weapons of mass destruction from Iraq to Syria in the months preceding the current Iraq war.
Georges Sada revealed the charges in an interview Wednesday with the New York Sun. They are detailed in his new book, "Saddam’s Secrets.”
"Saddam realized, this time, the Americans are coming," Sada told the Sun. "They handed over the weapons of mass destruction to the Syrians.”
The former Iraqi general said Special Republican Guard brigades loaded WMDs onto two converted Iraqi Airways planes.
He said he was told of the operation by two pilots that helped transport the materials. Sada says 56 flights were made, and were accompanied by a ground convoy of trucks carrying similar materials.
The Sun reports that the flights attracted scant international attention because they occurred at the same time that Iraq was sending relief to Syria for a dam collapse.
Sada’s claims echoed those made by Moshe Yaalon, Israel’s top general in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Yaalon told the Sun in December that Saddam had "transferred the chemical agents from Iraq to Syria.”
According to the Middle East Quarterly, Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon issued a similar warning in a Dec. 23, 2002 television appearance on Israel’s Channel 2.
"Chemical and biological weapons which Saddam is endeavoring to conceal have been moved from Iraq to Syria,” Sharon said.
Together, their claims challenge the conventional wisdom in the United States and Europe that pre-war intelligence estimates were incorrect in suggesting the mass-murdering Iraqi dictator either possessed or was close to possessing WMDs.
Even President Bush has conceded the point, telling Americans in a televised address in December, "It is true that many nations believed that Saddam had weapons of mass destruction. But much of the intelligence turned out to be wrong.”
Recent reports by Stephen Hayes of the Weekly Standard have similarly challenged the conventional wisdom on Saddam’s relationships with al-Qaida.
Hayes is calling for the release of approximately 2 million unclassified documents recovered in Iraq from the Hussein regime. He claims the documents could prove Saddam maintained significant contacts with al-Qaida.
Sada’s and Yaalon’s claims will be even more difficult, if not impossible, to prove, but several U.S. Senators will try to get to the bottom of the claims. Sada is scheduled to meet with Senators Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., and James Inhofe, R-Okla., next week. Both are members of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
" I wonder if the "mainstream" media knows about it."
Inappropriate question. They are puppets and will not be instructed to talk about it.
"If you haven't read about the Russian Spetsnaz Special Forces then look them up as it is said that they were in on the WMD transfer to the Bekka Valley in Syria just before the take out of Saddam.."
have a reference?
Huh? Those MiG-25s had been in service with the Iraq's since the 1980s. They were no surprise to any member of the Coalition.
The Iraqis were legally allowed to operate those MiGs. They were even allowed to operate ballistic missiles with a range not exceeding a specific range. MiGs are not WMDs.
Check out the link at post #12, please.
IIRC the MIG that was dug up was equipped with a modern avionics package, with components stamped "Made in France" and "Made in Germany."
Get real. The fit on that MiG-25 was standard Russian. The media hype is purely that 'hype'. The same as the hype surrounding the so-called French delivered Roland SAMS. All the Roland SAMS found in Iraq by the Coalition had been from batches sold to Iraq in the 1980s. To the media everything was factory fresh straight from France & Germany. I serve in the Coalition. That MiG-25 was a vanilla standard Russian export. No French or German made parts. Don't believe everything that you read in the media!
Just search for "Spetsnaz WMD Bekka Valley" and go from there...
"Just search for "Spetsnaz WMD Bekka Valley" and go from there..."
Thanks. Have posted.
I stand corrected. Apparently the Newsmax.com article was "hype" as you said.
The exact wording:
"The recovery of the advanced MiG fighter is considered to be an intelligence coup by the U.S. Air Force. The Foxbat may also be equipped with advanced Russian- and French-made electronics that were sold to Iraq during the 1990s in violation of a U.N. ban on arms sales to Baghdad."
http://urbanlegends.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2003/8/6/105528.shtml
No problem. The fuss that some Freepers made of the original hype was astounding. The same with the 1980s era Rolands found by Coaliton forces.
Man, Katie Couric is going to be all over this on the Today show tomorrow. Right.
Probably VX.
According to US Code, WMDs are what passes for destructive devices under 18 USC 922.
Yikes!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.