"And none of the people on that hit list were welcome in Iraq. Immediately after David's death, a number of the other inspectors and I exchanged emails saying, 'Be careful.' "
Posted on 02/25/2007 7:50:08 AM PST by 1066AD
Kelly death not suicide, says MP Sunday 25 February 9pm on BBC Two
Programme preview
An MP investigating the death of Dr David Kelly says he is convinced the weapons scientist did not kill himself. Norman Baker tells BBC Two's The Conspiracy Files he has reached the conclusion Dr Kelly's life was "deliberately taken by others".
Mr Baker has also obtained letters suggesting the coroner had doubts about the 2003 Hutton inquiry's ability to establish the cause of death.
Hutton reached a verdict of suicide but a public inquest was never completed.
Dr Kelly, whose body was found in July 2003, had been under intense pressure after being named as the suspected source of a BBC report claiming the government "sexed up" a dossier on the threat posed by Iraq.
Distress
Coroner Nicholas Gardiner opened an inquest into his death in Oxford just a few days after his body was found on Harrowdown Hill.
As you will know, a coroner has power to compel the attendance of witnesses. There are no such powers attached to a Public inquiry Nicholas Gardiner, writing to Lord Falconer in August 2003
But he was ordered to adjourn it by the Lord Chancellor, Lord Falconer, as the Hutton inquiry would take over, and it was not resumed.
Lord Falconer said he wanted to minimise the distress caused to the Kelly family.
The official account given by the Hutton inquiry was that Dr Kelly committed suicide by cutting his left wrist, and taking an overdose of the painkiller Co-Proxamol.
In his report, Lord Hutton said: "There was no involvement by a third person in Dr Kelly's death."
Assassinated
Mr Baker, who has spent a year investigating the case, believes there is enough evidence to suggest that the scientist did not kill himself.
The Liberal Democrat MP said toxicology reports suggested there was not enough painkiller in Dr Kelly's system to kill him, and the method he had apparently chosen to commit suicide was not a recognised or effective one.
"I'm satisfied it was not suicide. And after that you're left with the conclusion that his life was deliberately taken by others," he tells The Conspiracy Files.
He tells the programme it has been suggested to him that the weapons scientist was assassinated.
Speaking last week on BBC Radio 5 Live, Mr Baker said he was not ready to reveal all the evidence he has unearthed, but would consider passing a file to the police in due course.
Witnesses
Mr Baker has obtained letters between Mr Gardiner and the Lord Chancellor's office from 2003, suggesting the coroner was not happy with the Hutton inquiry's ability to establish the cause of death.
The letters were given to the MP by Constitutional Affairs minister Harriet Harman and have not been revealed publicly before.
I believe that David was probably a victim of Iraqi Intelligence Service Richard Spertzel, former colleague of Dr Kelly
On 6 August 2003 Mr Gardiner wrote to the Lord Chancellor expressing concern about Hutton's lack of legal powers compared with an inquest.
"As you will know, a coroner has power to compel the attendance of witnesses. There are no such powers attached to a public inquiry," Mr Gardiner wrote.
The Oxfordshire coroner also asked to be allowed to continue with the inquest because "the preliminary cause of death given at the opening of the inquest no longer represents the final view of the pathologist, and evidence from him would need to be given to correct and update the evidence already received".
Mr Gardiner met officials from the Department of Constitutional Affairs on 11 August 2003 "to discuss the mechanics of admitting evidence from the pathologist and analyst".
Death certificate
The Lord Chancellor then accepted the coroner's need to have one further hearing.
In a letter to Mr Gardiner, dated 12 August 2003, Sarah Albon, private secretary to the Lord Chancellor, said that "the cause of death of Dr David Kelly is likely to be adequately investigated by the judicial inquiry conducted by Lord Hutton".
It said Lord Falconer accepted Mr Gardiner may want to take fresh evidence from the pathologist and analyst.
But he was "most anxious to avoid any unnecessary distress to the family, and has asked that you keep the proceedings as short as possible and, so far as the Coroner's Rules allow, take the evidence in writing".
The coroner did just that in a hearing on 14 August 2003.
On 18 August 2003 a death certificate was registered setting out the causes of death.
'Hit list'
Yet the Hutton inquiry had only just started taking evidence and its report was published a full five months later.
In March 2004, a final hearing was held in Oxford at which Mr Gardiner said he was satisfied there were "no exceptional reasons," including concerns about the Hutton inquiry's powers, for the inquest to be resumed.
The Conspiracy Files explores a number of alternatives as to how Dr Kelly might have met his end.
A former colleague of the weapons inspector, former UN weapons inspector Richard Spertzel, tells the programme he believes the scientist was murdered by the Iraqis.
Mr Spertzel, who was America's most senior biological weapons inspector and who worked alongside Dr Kelly for many years in Iraq, believes the Iraqi regime may have pursued a vendetta against Dr Kelly.
"I believe that David was probably a victim of Iraqi Intelligence Service because of long standing enmity of Iraq towards David," he says.
"A number of us were on an Iraqi hit list. I was number three, and my understanding, David was only a couple behind that.
"And none of the people on that hit list were welcome in Iraq. Immediately after David's death, a number of the other inspectors and I exchanged emails saying, 'Be careful.' "
The Conspiracy Files is on Sunday, 25 February, at 2100 GMT on BBC Two.
Story from BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/uk_politics/6390981.stm
Anybody got a clean version of the man with the headache?
I can't find mine.
murder cannot be hid long... at the length truth will out.
I followed this early on and don't believe it was a suicide and was disappointed to see it classified as such.
No mention of the email from Kelly to Judith Miller where he predicted he would be "found dead in the woods" if Iraq was invaded. And how he was... found dead in the woods after the invasion, and on Iraq's National Day. No mention of his email to Miller that very morning about "dark actors playing games" and he would know more by the end of the week.
Ping! Thought you might want to revisit this one. His death as a suicide never made any sense.
Nice bit of counter intelligence there, by Mr Spertzel. The BBC were the ones who blew the confidential information given by Kelly to a reporter. No contempt of any proceedings for those worthies. Kelly was very ill advised to open his mouth. Whatever information he gave out and remember he was professionally and ethically bound to secrecy, the information served no useful purpose. Unless the purpose was for the subversives in the BBC, to undermine the Government.
Whatever the cause of Kelly's demise, the last people to care are any so-called "Liberal Democrat" MP.
I would go with the facts as known though.
ping
The (ex) NYT reporter of that name?
One and the same.
"And none of the people on that hit list were welcome in Iraq. Immediately after David's death, a number of the other inspectors and I exchanged emails saying, 'Be careful.' "
Thanks. I've mentioned here before that I thought this was a homicide, based on the timing, the crime scene evidence, and what was known about Kelly's mental state. I'm still trying to figure out who did it and why, but I assume the motive relates to Kelly's role in the "sexed up" controversy. Spertzel's theory that Iraqi intelligence was behind it is an interesting idea. I was leaning more in another direction, but we'll see.
I love reading your papers, happy to send any info I run into your way. :-)
It will be years before any of this gets sorted out, I fear...
1990 : (OXFORD LABORATORIES MICROBIOLOGY LAB RECEIVES A JOB APPLICATION FROM AN IRAQI SCIENTIST; BECOMES SUSPICIOUS) The scientists could have been studying germ warfare : Some of Britain's top laboratories were infiltrated by Iraqi scientists researching germ warfare in the run-up to the Gulf War, a scientist has claimed. Iraqi scientists - financed by generous grants from the Iraqi government - reportedly applied for and gained research posts in academic and medical institutions. Dr Joseph Selkon, a leading Oxford microbiologist, told BBC Radio 4's File on 4 that the infiltration was discovered after he became suspicious about one Iraqi research applicant. Dr Joseph Selkon, a leading Oxford microbiologist, told BBC Radio 4's File on 4 [later, in 2002] that the infiltration was discovered after he became suspicious about one Iraqi research applicant. His suspicions sparked extra security checks, which revealed that leading microbiology laboratories had been targeted by Baghdad. About 10 top Iraqi microbiologists had been granted places in sensitive research establishments around Britain. Dr Selkon, retired director of the Oxford Laboratories Microbiology Laboratory, received the job application from the medically-trained Iraqi scientist in 1990. "He had a superb CV, he was going to work for us for free, and we would receive £20,000... from the Iraqi government," Dr Selkon said. Dr Selkon's team had been working on a project to prevent bacteria becoming more resistant to antibiotics. But antibiotic resistance is not a significant problem in Iraq. Dr Selkon's suspicions grew when he questioned colleagues in surgery and other medical departments. He found it was only microbiology - the discipline most applicable to germ warfare - which had attracted Iraqi interest. Dr Selkon reported his worries to the security services. "I asked them to check whether this was just a one-off application to Oxford or whether this was part of a more general plan; they rather thought I was thinking science fiction. "But nevertheless they went away and came back later to say they had found nine or 10 scientists of this nature - all from Iraq - who had already been accepted by universities across the country to work in the microbiology field." Dr Selkon concluded the Iraqis were working on plans to make bacteriological weapons resistant to standard methods of treatment by antibiotics. The Iraqi researchers, he says, were arrested at the outbreak of the Gulf War and sent back to Iraq. ------"Iraqis 'infiltrated UK germ labs' ,"BBC News ^ | Nov. 16, 2002 | BBC News
AUGUST 1990 : (GULF WAR : IRAQ INVADES KUWAIT) Dr Kelly is a former UN weapons inspector and now advises British ministers on weapons of mass destruction an adviser in the proliferation and arms control secretariat. He came from a background in agricultural science. He was chief science officer at Britain's natural environment research council institute of virology and the head of microbiology at the chemical defence establishment in Porton Down from 1984 to 1992. Dr Kelly became senior adviser on biological warfare for the UN in Iraq in 1994, holding the post until 1999. Between 1991 and 1998 he played a key role in inspecting Iraqi weapons after the Gulf war, once saying during a lecture: "When Iraq invaded Kuwait in August 1990, little did I realise that Saddam Hussein would dictate the next 10 years of my life." He also led all the visits and inspections of Russian biological warfare facilities from 1991 to 1994 under the 1992 trilateral agreement between the US, UK and Russia. --------- "Profile: Dr David Kelly ," by Matthew Tempest, political correspondent, ????, Friday July 18, 2003
1991 - 1998 : (DR DAVID KELLY : IRAQ WEAPONS INSPECTIONS) Between 1991 and 1998 he played a key role in inspecting Iraqi weapons after the Gulf war, once saying during a lecture: "When Iraq invaded Kuwait in August 1990, little did I realise that Saddam Hussein would dictate the next 10 years of my life." - "Profile: Dr David Kelly," by Matthew Tempest, political correspondent, UK Guardian, Friday July 18, 2003
1991 - 1994 : (DR DAVID KELLY LED ALL VISITS & INSPECTIONS OF RUSSIAN BIOLOGICAL WARFARE FACILITIES UNDER THE TRILATERAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE US, UK & RUSSIA) He also led all the visits and inspections of Russian biological warfare facilities from 1991 to 1994 under the 1992 trilateral agreement between the US, UK and Russia. - "Profile: Dr David Kelly," by Matthew Tempest, political correspondent, UK Guardian, Friday July 18, 2003
(* My note : Wasn't this the same place where Scott Ritter met his Russian wife? Also, weren't we fooled by the Russian Biopreparat program in the first place?)
1994 - 1999 : (DR DAVID KELLY BECOMES SENIOR ADVISOR ON BIOLOGICAL WARFARE FOR THE UN IN IRAQ) Dr Kelly became senior adviser on biological warfare for the UN in Iraq in 1994, holding the post until 1999. - "Profile: Dr David Kelly," by Matthew Tempest, political correspondent, UK Guardian, Friday July 18, 2003
1995 : (UK : DR DAVID KELLY PRESENTS EVIDENCE OF IRAQ HAD BUILT & TESTED A DIRTY BOMB TO THE GOVERNMENT) London - David Kelly, the British weapons expert at the centre of the Iraq dossier row, had amassed firm evidence to show that Saddam Hussein built and tested a "dirty bomb." Designed to cause cancer and birth defects, the radiological weapon could have been used by terrorists to create panic and widespread contamination in a crowded city. Kelly... presented evidence of the bomb to the government in 1995 and recommended to Foreign Office officials that it feature in the government's intelligence dossier on Iraq. However, despite secret Iraqi documents being produced to prove its existence, it was not included. ....In an interview with The Sunday Times in June, Kelly said the dirty bomb was originally built by Saddam for use against Iranian troops during the Iran-Iraq war as a tactical weapon and an instrument of terror. ------ "Dead scientist revealed Iraq dirty bomb," by Nicholas Rufford, Sunday Times, 08/03/03
*****
In the wake of Kelly's death, further questions are likely to be asked about the bomb. One reason it may have been left out of the dossier was that Iraq ended the trials in the late 1980s and there was no evidence they ever restarted. But a defence source suggested an alternative explanation: that in 1987 when Iraq conducted the trials, British military scientists were interested in the results. At that time Britain still had unofficial friendly relations with Saddam. ----- "Dead scientist revealed Iraq dirty bomb," by Nicholas Rufford, Sunday Times, 08/03/03
*******
...During evidence to the foreign affairs select committee in July [2003], in remarks which havebeen largely overlooked, Kelly told John Maples, a former Conservative spokesman on defence and foreign affairs: "On one inspection that I led ... the acknowledgment was made by General Fahi Shaheen, together with Brigadier Hassan (two senior Iraqi weapons specialists), that they had undertaken experiments with radiological weapons in 1987." Maples asked: "Do you think that is true?" to which Kelly replied: "Undoubtedly it is true." ----- "Dead scientist revealed Iraq dirty bomb," by Nicholas Rufford, Sunday Times, 08/03/03
****
Iraq's dirty bomb was made from a material called radioactive zirconium which was packed into a bomb casing with high explosives. Iraq had access to zirconium stored at its Al-Tarmiya reactor site - under United Nations safeguards - ostensibly for use in its peaceful nuclear power program. ------ "Dead scientist revealed Iraq dirty bomb," by Nicholas Rufford, Sunday Times, 08/03/03
******
AUGUST 1997 : (SOUTH AFRICA SELLS ZIRCONIUM TUBING PLANT TO CHINA, NEWSPAPER REPORT OF ILLEGAL CHINESE WORKERS DISMANTLING PLANT ALERTS PEOPLE TO THE SALE RIGHT AROUND THE TIME CHINA HAD CONCLUDED AN AGREEMENT WITH IRAN TO BUILD A ZIRCONIUM TUBING PLANT THERE) Abstract : In August 1997, South Africa and China concluded a contract for the sale of a plant used to manufacture zirconium tubing at Pelindaba. The deal was not made public until a South African newspaper revealed the presence of "illegal" Chinese technicians dismantling the plant and packing equipment for export to China. The Chinese workers had entered South Africa with business visas, and had been working without the proper employment visas. According to an unidentified member of the South African government, had it not been for the newspaper report, "there might have been nothing to stop this sensitive equipment leaving the country."
The South African Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) stated that there are three pieces of equipment, described as CNC [computer numerically controlled] machine tools used to make complex molds, require authorization for export under the Nuclear Suppliers Group dual-use guidelines. The South African government requires an end-user certificate from China before it will authorize the export of the equipment. US officials are concerned that China might ship the South African plant to Iran, because China has signed a contract to build a zirconium tube factory in Iran. - "Is Iran In RSA-China Zirconium Deal?," Jane's Pointer, February 1998, p.1 , 1 February 1998 via - "CNS Nuclear and Missile Developments Database: Sample Abstracts on South Africa's Nuclear Doctrine," These abstracts were selected from the over 30,000 entries in the CNS Nuclear and Missile Developments Database., http://www.nti.org/e_research/e1_safrica_nuclear.html
NOVEMBER 4, 1998 : (DAVID KELLY ADDRESSES A FRENCH DEFENSE CONFERENCE & TALKS TO REUTERS ABOUT IRAQI BIOWARFARE PROGRAM; See ANTHRAX & CAMELPOX) David Kelly,[later found dead of apparent suicide in 2003] a senior UK defense ministry expert, addressed a French defense conference and spoke with Reuters. Kelly explained the dangers in Iraq's bw program. As Reuters reported, "The worst-case scenario was that of an Iraqi fighter-bomber spraying the contents of a 2,200-litre drop tank during a high-speed, low-altitude flight over a city. 'It could spray anthrax, a living bacteria which is inhaled and blocks body functions. It kills within two or three days. Tel Aviv has a million inhabitants--most could be killed by a single aircraft flying over the city in specific weather conditions.' . . Kelly also said he had found evidence of Iraqi 'dirty tricks' programmes that included research into 'Camel Pox,' a biological weapon that would incapacitate or kill North Americans or Europeans but spare Arabs."-------- Iraq News, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 1998, By Laurie Mylroie citing "THE DANGERS OF IRAQ'S BW PROGRAM," REUTERS, NOV 4, 1998
FEBRUARY 2002 : (WILSON "MISSION TO NIGER")
MAY 2002 : (UK : DR DAVID KELLY MEETS WITH JOURNALISTS) --------- "Profile: Dr David Kelly ," by Matthew Tempest, political correspondent, ????, Friday July 18, 2003
SEPTEMBER 2002 : (UK : DR DAVID KELLY APPEARS BEFORE THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS SELECT COMMITTEE TO GIVE EVIDENCE ABOUT IRAQ) In September last year [2002] he gave evidence to a Commons committee probing the war on terrorism. He was speaking in his role as chief scientific officer and senior adviser to the proliferation and arms control secretariat of the Ministry of Defence, and the non-proliferation department of the Foreign Office...Dr Kelly, an adviser to the government and an expert in biological warfare, had previously worked at the Porton Down research centre. A renowned microbiologist he was an adviser to the Foreign Office before moving to the MoD. He spent seven years as an Unscom inspector in the 1990s, visiting Iraq on 37 occasions. --------- "Profile: Dr David Kelly ," by Matthew Tempest, political correspondent, ????, Friday July 18, 2003
SEPTEMBER 2002 : (DR DAVID KELLY TESTIFIES BEFORE COMMONS COMMITTEE PROBING THE WAR ON TERRORISM) In September last year he gave evidence to a Commons committee probing the war on terrorism. He was speaking in his role as chief scientific officer and senior adviser to the proliferation and arms control secretariat of the Ministry of Defence, and the non-proliferation department of the Foreign Office. - "Profile: Dr David Kelly," by Matthew Tempest, political correspondent, UK Guardian, Friday July 18, 2003 SEPTEMBER 2002 : (UK : DR DAVID KELLY TESTIFIES BEFORE THE FAC - FOREIGN AFFAIRS SELECT COMMITTEE) - "Profile: Dr David Kelly," by Matthew Tempest, political correspondent, UK Guardian, Friday July 18, 2003
OCTOBER 2002 : (BBC INTERVIEW OF DR. DAVID KELLY : KELLY SAYS IRAQ IS AN "IMMEDIATE THREAT" - NOTE: FOR SOME REASON THE BBC DIDN'T AIR THESE QUOTES FROM ITS INTERVIEW OF DR. KELLY AT THE TIME AND DIDN'T REVEAL THEM UNTIL YEARS LATER, AFTER HIS DEATH) Kelly's [October 2002] comments on Iraq's weapons -- never previously broadcast -- were to be aired on Wednesday evening [January 2004] in a BBC "Panorama" programme that reconstructed the run-up to his death and Hutton's inquiry. Asked if Iraq was an "immediate threat", Kelly, a former United Nations weapons inspector, said: "Yes." "Even if they're not actually filled and deployed today, the capability exists to get them filled and deployed within a matter of days and weeks," he said in the October 2002 interview with the BBC, which was submitted to Hutton [* My note: see the later Huton inquiry]. --------- "Dead UK expert believed Iraq WMD posed threat," Reuters, 1/21/04
MARCH 2003 : (IRAQ : BBC's GILLIGAN BLOWING SMOKE FOR IRAQ -- see DR DAVID KELLY) ... it was Gilligan during the war that "reported" that Coalition forces were NOT at Baghdad Airport. What kind of person must Kelly have been to have met secretly with Gilligan and murmur about Dossiers containing lies and that Blair had misrepresented British intelligence in order to go to war? Not a very good person, is my assessment.... ---------50 posted on 01/03/2004 9:17:40 AM PST by cyncooper
MARCH 21, 2003 : (WOT : REPORT : US & MEXICO SEEKING SIX TERRORISTS WITH CHEM/RADIATION MATERIALS) ---- "Fox: US/Mexico seeking 6 terrorists with chem/radiation materials,"Fox News Channel, 3/21/03
MAY 13 &14, 2003 : (PARIS, FRANCE : JOE WILSON ATTENDS SEMINAR ORGANIZED BY THE SAHEL CLUB) BTW, that puts Wilson at a seminar organized by the Sahel Club of Paris in May 13-14, 2003. The list of attendees is a virtual who's who of the Axis of Weasels' diplomatic corps. --- FR's seamole or maybe Shermy
MAY 22, 2003 : (UK : DR. DAVID KELLY MEETS WITH THE BBC'S GILLIGAN) Now, the dossier and its contents had been around. What moved [Dr. David] Kelly to meet with Gilligan in May?---------50 posted on 01/03/2004 9:17:40 AM PST by cyncooper
To: seamole; Shermy BTW, that puts Wilson at a seminar organized by the Sahel Club of Paris in May 13-14, 2003. The list of attendees is a virtual who's who of the Axis of Weasels' diplomatic corps. Thanks to you both for your fascinating links and excerpts. I am just convinced that there were two plans to try to bring down Bush and Blair, both on the charges that they "lied" about intelligence. I noted the above May dates of Wilson at a seminar. Look when Dr. Kelly (who I think was definitely stabbing Blair in the back with his "sexed-up" charge and killed himself once the jig was up) met with the reporter Gilligan----a reporter Kelly would have avoided had he been an honorable sort. After all, it was Gilligan during the war that "reported" that Coalition forces were NOT at Baghdad Airport. What kind of person must Kelly have been to have met secretly with Gilligan and murmur about Dossiers containing lies and that Blair had misrepresented British intelligence in order to go to war? Not a very good person, is my assessment. Anyway, the date Kelly met with Gilligan was May 22. Excerpt: Q32 Andrew Mackinlay: Okay. You met Gilligan, I think, for the first time about two and a half years ago? Dr Kelly: Not to my recollection. The first time that I remember meeting him was at a meeting in September of last year. Q33 Andrew Mackinlay: September 2002? Dr Kelly: Correct. Q34 Andrew Mackinlay: How many times have you seen him since? Dr Kelly: Twice. Q35 Andrew Mackinlay: On what occasions? Dr Kelly: A day in February, a date I cannot remember, I am having difficulty locating it, and the now infamous May 22 meeting. Q36 Andrew Mackinlay: Of this year? Dr Kelly: Of this year. END EXCERPT ---------Kelly Hearing Now, the dossier and its contents had been around. What moved Kelly to meet with Gilligan in May? 50 posted on 01/03/2004 9:17:40 AM PST by cyncooper
MAY 28, 2003 : (CIA WHITE PAPER 'IRAQI MOBILE BIOLOGICAL WARFARE AGENT PRODUCTION PLANTS,' CONCLUDES TRAILERS FOUND IN IRAQ WERE MOBILE BIOWEAPONS LABS) Experts described the debate as intense despite the American intelligence agencies' release last week of the nuanced, carefully qualified white paper concluding that the mobile units were most likely part of Iraq's biowarfare program. It was posted May 28 on the Internet at www.cia.gov. "We are in full agreement on it," an official said of the Central Intelligence Agency and the Defense Intelligence Agency at a briefing on the white paper. The six-page report, "Iraqi Mobile Biological Warfare Agent Production Plants," called discovery of the trailers "the strongest evidence to date that Iraq was hiding a biological warfare program." A senior administration official said the White House had not put pressure on the intelligence community in any way on the content of its white paper, or on the timing of its release. -------- "Some Analysts of Iraq Trailers Reject Germ Use," By JUDITH MILLER and WILLIAM J. BROAD, New York Times, 06-07-03
JULY 6, 2003 : (WILSON OP ED IN THE NY TIMES)
JUNE 7, 2003 : (NY TIMES JUDITH MILLER & WILLIAM J BROAD STORY ABOUT MOBILE WEAPONS LAB TRAILERS - MORE 'ANONYMOUS SOURCES' TRY TO DOWNPLAY THE DISCOVERY) ----------------- "Some Analysts of Iraq Trailers Reject Germ Use," By JUDITH MILLER and WILLIAM J. BROAD, New York Times, 06-07-03
JUNE 2003 : (DR DAVID KELLY ON DIRTY BOMBS) In an interview with The Sunday Times in June, Kelly said the dirty bomb was originally built by Saddam for use against Iranian troops during the Iran-Iraq war as a tactical weapon and an instrument of terror. He said Iraq still "possessed the know-how and the materials to build a radiological weapon." The threat was potentially more serious than some other weapons of mass destruction, he said, because Iraq still retained the main ingredients - nuclear material and high explosives. Asked why it had not formed part of the government's case against Iraq, Kelly said he did not know but said there were people in government who were skeptical about the potency of such a weapon.... ...During evidence to the foreign affairs select committee in July [2003], in remarks which havebeen largely overlooked, Kelly told John Maples, a former Conservative spokesman on defence and foreign affairs: "On one inspection that I led ... the acknowledgment was made by General Fahi Shaheen, together with Brigadier Hassan (two senior Iraqi weapons specialists), that they had undertaken experiments with radiological weapons in 1987." Maples asked: "Do you think that is true?" to which Kelly replied: "Undoubtedly it is true." Maples pressed Kelly on why details had not been included in the dossier, saying: "A dirty nuclear bomb, I would have thought, was pretty significant." Kelly said: "You cannot include everything." Maples said this weekend he remained puzzled and uneasy over why the government had excluded evidence of the dirty bomb from its dossier: "It is a mystery why this issue (of the dirty bomb) was not picked up by the government and why Kelly gave me the answer he did - that there was lots of other stuff that had to be included." "They (the government) were obviously looking for ways of making the dossier as attractive as they could, and as threatening as they could, and you would have thought Iraq's ability to let off a dirty nuclear weapon was pretty serious." In private, Kelly thought the evidence worthy of inclusion in the dossier because of the possibility that Iraq could reactivate the programeven after it had been stripped of other non-conventional weapons. Iraq's dirty bomb was made from a material called radioactive zirconium which was packed into a bomb casing with high explosives. Iraq had access to zirconium stored at its Al-Tarmiya reactor site - under United Nations safeguards - ostensibly for use in its peaceful nuclear power program. ------ "Dead scientist revealed Iraq dirty bomb," by Nicholas Rufford, Sunday Times, 08/03/03
[My note: Note the sale of a South African zirconium plant to China....]
JUNE 2003 : (UK : DR. DAVID KELLY : SADDAM HUSSEIN BUILT A DIRTY BOMB)
Dead U.K. Expert: Saddam Built a Dirty Bomb
Phil Brennan, NewsMax.com
Monday, Aug. 4, 2003
New evidence of Saddam Hussein’s possession of weapons of mass destruction was provided last June [2003] by a top weapons expert, now dead, and it could have an enormous impact on the 2004 presidential election.
The stunning revelation by the British scientist, who committed suicide last month [July 2003] over the issue of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction could have anti-war Democrats running for cover.
According to Britain's Sunday Times, Dr. David Kelly had amassed convincing evidence that Saddam Hussein had built and tested a dirty nuclear bomb as long ago as 1987, and was perfectly capable of building the deadly weapons right up to the final months of his regime. Moreover the radiological weapons could have been used by terrorists to create panic and widespread contamination in a crowded city.
Dr. Kelly presented evidence of the bomb to the British government back in 1995 and recommended to Foreign Office officials that it be highlighted in the government's intelligence dossier on Iraq, which spelled out the reasons justifying an attack on Saddam's regime. However, the Times reports, despite secret Iraqi documents being produced to prove its existence, for unexplained reasons it was not included. [* I wonder- could these documents have been provided by foreign sources to set Blair up much as the niger docs were provided to try to set bush up for a fall? ]
JUNE 2003 : (DR DAVID KELLY INTRVIEWED BY BRITAIN'S SUNDAY TIMES : KELLY SAYS IRAQ MADE AND TESTED DIRTY BOMBS AS EARLY AS 1987 ) According to Britain's Sunday Times [in 2003], Dr. David Kelly had amassed convincing evidence that Saddam Hussein had built and tested a dirty nuclear bomb as long ago as 1987, and was perfectly capable of building the deadly weapons right up to the final months of his regime. Moreover the radiological weapons could have been used by terrorists to create panic and widespread contamination in a crowded city. ... In a June interview with the newspaper, Kelly revealed that Saddam originally built the dread weapon capable of causing cancer and birth defects for use against Iranian troops during the Iran-Iraq war as a tactical weapon and an instrument of terror. Moreover Kelly insisted that said Iraq still "possessed the know-how and the materials to build a radiological weapon, "adding that the threat posed by such weapons was potentially more serious than some other weapons of mass destruction because Iraq still retained the main ingredients to build dirty bombs such as nuclear material and high explosives. When the Times asked why this shocking information was not featured in the British government's case for going to war against Iraq, Kelly said he did not know, but added that there were people in government who were skeptical about the potency of such a weapon. In private, Kelly is said to have believed the evidence should have been included in the dossier because of the possibility that Iraq could reactivate the program even after it had been stripped of other non-conventional weapons.
[* My note : were the claims against the US use of depleted uranium shells just an effort to cover up for Iraq's testing of such devices?]
JULY 9, 2003 : (REPORT SURFACES THAT DR. DAVID KELLY HAD AN UNAUTHORIZED MEETING WITH BBC JOURNALIST ANDREW GILLIGAN) It was on July 9 that Dr David Kelly - a former senior UN weapons inspector - broke into the public consciousness, named in the papers as someone who had had an "unauthorised" meeting with the BBC journalist Andrew Gilligan. - "Profile: Dr David Kelly," by Matthew Tempest, political correspondent, UK Guardian, Friday July 18, 2003
JULY 9, 2003 : (UK : DR DAVID KELLY APPEARS BEFORE THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS SELECT COMMITTEE ; NEWS BREAKS THAT DR. DAVID KELLY HAD AN UNAUTHORIZED MEETING WITH THE BBC JOURNALIST ANDREW GILLIGAN) It was on July 9 that Dr David Kelly - a former senior UN weapons inspector - broke into the public consciousness, named in the papers as someone who had had an "unauthorised" meeting with the BBC journalist Andrew Gilligan. According to Dr Kelly's own evidence to the foreign affairs select committee this week he had informed his "line manager" at the MoD himself that he had met Mr Gilligan and could, therefore, at least be perceived to be the source of the Today programme's allegations that the government's dossier was "sexed up". Although he appeared tentative, quietly spoken but calm before MPs, it was in fact his second appearance before the FAC - he also gave evidence last September. Dr Kelly's surprising identification by the MoD came about when the defence secretary, Geoff Hoon, wrote to the BBC chairman, Gavyn Davies, demanding to know whether the official who had come forward was the source of Gilligan's original story which sparked the row. Mr Hoon gave Mr Davies Dr Kelly's name, asking the corporation to confirm or deny that it was the same person as Gilligan's source. Tony Blair's spokesman insisted at the time its approach was "not an assault on journalistic sources, this is not an assault on the BBC, it is not a vendetta". He described it as a "genuine attempt to get at the truth behind what is one of the most serious allegations you can make against a government". How Dr Kelly's identity came into the public domain is unclear. In his session before the FAC, Dr Kelly was accompanied by two MoD "minders" who sat behind the scientist as he was questioned by the panel of MPs. That questioning often became aggressive, with Labour MP Andrew Mackinlay, in particular, first assaulting him for refusing to say, without checking his diary, which other journalists he may have met in the month of May. Later Mr Mackinlay changed tack, dubbing Dr Kelly "chaff" and a fall guy. At all times, Dr Kelly merely retorted that he "accepted the process" of both the MoD's operations, and the FAC inquiry, although, in a comment which received little attention at the time, he said he was unable to check his diary since he was unable to get to his house - presumably due to the media encamping outside. --------- "Profile: Dr David Kelly ," by Matthew Tempest, political correspondent, ????, Friday July 18, 2003
JULY 15, 2003 : (KELLY) In his evidence on Tuesday, he also admitted meeting Susan Watts of Newsnight, and having met Mr Gilligan on three occasions. He conceded that he may have met other journalists, none of which were authorised by the MoD, but that he had experience of dealing with journalists in the past. However, it was unclear from his evidence whether or not he was the main source of Mr Gilligan's evidence. He denied it, although the dates, and some of the topics discussed, fitted Mr Gilligan's story. --------- "Profile: Dr David Kelly ," by Matthew Tempest, political correspondent, ????, Friday July 18, 2003
JULY 2003 mid : (UK : DR KELLY'S EVIDENCE IMPLIES HE HAD INFORMED HIS BOSS AT THE MINISTRY OF DEFENSE THAT HE HAD MET WITH BBC JOURNALIST GILLIGAN) According to Dr Kelly's own evidence to the foreign affairs select committee this week he had informed his "line manager" at the MoD himself that he had met Mr Gilligan and could, therefore, at least be perceived to be the source of the Today programme's allegations that the government's dossier was "sexed up". Although he appeared tentative, quietly spoken but calm before MPs, it was in fact his second appearance before the FAC - he also gave evidence last September. Dr Kelly's surprising identification by the MoD came about when the defence secretary, Geoff Hoon, wrote to the BBC chairman, Gavyn Davies, demanding to know whether the official who had come forward was the source of Gilligan's original story which sparked the row. Mr Hoon gave Mr Davies Dr Kelly's name, asking the corporation to confirm or deny that it was the same person as Gilligan's source. (* My note: Wonder who told Hoon?) Tony Blair's spokesman insisted at the time its approach was "not an assault on journalistic sources, this is not an assault on the BBC, it is not a vendetta". He described it as a "genuine attempt to get at the truth behind what is one of the most serious allegations you can make against a government" How Dr Kelly's identity came into the public domain is unclear. In his session before the FAC, Dr Kelly was accompanied by two MoD "minders" who sat behind the scientist as he was questioned by the panel of MPs. That questioning often became aggressive, with Labour MP Andrew Mackinlay, in particular, first assaulting him for refusing to say, without checking his diary, which other journalists he may have met in the month of May. Later Mr Mackinlay changed tack, dubbing Dr Kelly "chaff" and a fall guy. At all times, Dr Kelly merely retorted that he "accepted the process" of both the MoD's operations, and the FAC inquiry, although, in a comment which received little attention at the time, he said he was unable to check his diary since he was unable to get to his house - presumably due to the media encamping outside. In his evidence on Tuesday, he also admitted meeting Susan Watts of Newsnight, and having met Mr Gilligan on three occasions. He conceded that he may have met other journalists, none of which were authorised by the MoD, but that he had experience of dealing with journalists in the past. However, it was unclear from his evidence whether or not he was the main source of Mr Gilligan's evidence. He denied it, although the dates, and some of the topics discussed, fitted Mr Gilligan's story. Dr Kelly is a former UN weapons inspector and now advises British ministers on weapons of mass destruction an adviser in the proliferation and arms control secretariat. He came from a background in agricultural science. He was chief science officer at Britain's natural environment research council institute of virology and the head of microbiology at the chemical defence establishment in Porton Down from 1984 to 1992. Dr Kelly became senior adviser on biological warfare for the UN in Iraq in 1994, holding the post until 1999. Between 1991 and 1998 he played a key role in inspecting Iraqi weapons after the Gulf war, once saying during a lecture: "When Iraq invaded Kuwait in August 1990, little did I realise that Saddam Hussein would dictate the next 10 years of my life." He also led all the visits and inspections of Russian biological warfare facilities from 1991 to 1994 under the 1992 trilateral agreement between the US, UK and Russia. In September last year he gave evidence to a Commons committee probing the war on terrorism. He was speaking in his role as chief scientific officer and senior adviser to the proliferation and arms control secretariat of the Ministry of Defence, and the non-proliferation department of the Foreign Office. When he spoke to the foreign affairs committee this week, it was in very different circumstances - and under a much brighter media spotlight. - "Profile: Dr David Kelly," by Matthew Tempest, political correspondent, UK Guardian, Friday July 18, 2003
JULY 17, 2003 : (BBC JOURNALIST GILLIGAN "SEXED UP" HIS CLAIM THAT THE UK'S ALISTAIR CAMPBELL HAD "SEXED UP" INTEL ON IRAQ'S WMD) The BBC journalist who claimed that Alastair Campbell had "sexed up" intelligence on Iraq's alleged weapons of mass destruction was tonight accused of changing his evidence by MPs. Andrew Gilligan, the defence correspondent on Radio 4's Today programme, was described as an "unsatisfactory witness" by the Commons foreign affairs select committee following his second appearance before it today. He had been recalled to give further evidence after a senior Ministry of Defence official, Dr David Kelly, denied suggestions that he was the possible source of Gilligan's story. The journalist had accused Mr Campbell of inserting a claim into the dossier, which was published last September, that the former Iraqi president, Saddam Hussein, could deploy weapons of mass destruction in 45 minutes. Mr Campbell has insisted that the claim was not included on his instructions. He has been backed by security chiefs, who say that it was passed by the joint intelligence committee. Speaking after Mr Gilligan's almost two-hour appearance before the committee, its chairman, Donald Anderson MP, said: "Mr Gilligan clearly changed his mind in the course of the evidence, in particular in relation to serious allegations concerning Mr Campbell." The Labour MP added that a transcript of today's session, which took place behind closed doors, would be made public. "There is a grave danger of unfairness to Mr Campbell. On the question of unfairness and the unsatisfactory nature of the evidence, the press and public can make up their own minds," he said. He added that the transcript could be published within seven days, saying that there had been a "veering" in the course of the evidence "in relation to Mr Campbell and the 45 minutes". Mr Gilligan's story, which quoted a single intelligence source in claiming that Mr Campbell had "sexed up" the dossier, was broadcast on BBC Radio 4's Today programme. The BBC journalist insisted that he had not changed his story, and said that Mr Anderson had "deliberately misinterpreted" his evidence. "This was an ambush by a hanging jury with only one opposition member present for the relevant section of the meeting," he said. "Donald Anderson has deliberately misinterpreted my evidence, and I have asked for the transcript to be published to make this clear. "The Labour members of the committee were determined to find fault with my story, but did not do so. I defended my journalism with vigour, pointing out, among other things, that many of my source's allegations have been corroborated by other evidence." A statement issued by the BBC tonight defended Mr Gilligan, and accused the committee of launching "personal attacks" on him. "Andrew Gilligan has not changed his story. The committee launched a series of personal attacks on Mr Gilligan in an atmosphere which was largely hostile," the statement read. "We deeply resent the way the committee was used to attack Mr Gilligan's integrity."------- "BBC reporter who claimed "sexed" up Intelligence accused of changing his story. ; MPs accuse Gilligan of changing story" , by Chris Borg and agencies, Guardian , Thursday July 17, 2003
JULY 2003 : (DR DAVID KELLY EMAILS JUDITH MILLER) In an email to American author Judy Miller, sent just before he [David Kelly] left his home for the last time, he referred to "many dark actors playing games". But, according to Miller, Dr Kelly gave no indication he was depressed or planning to take his own life. He told her he would wait "until the end of the week" before deciding his next move following his traumatic appearance before a House of Commons select committee. Yesterday, Miller said she believed the "dark forces" Dr Kelly was referring to were in the secret services and Ministry of Defence. -------- "DARK ACTORS PLAYING GAMES: How suicide scientist described tormentors in final email to friend; DEATH OF A FALL GUY," Jul 20 2003, the Glasgow Sunday Mail, July 20, 2003 by Jamie Macaskill
JULY 2003 : (DR DAVID KELLY IS FOUND DEAD, WRISTS SLIT - APPARENT SUICIDE)
AUGUST 13, 2003 : (DR KELLY INVESTIGATION/ BBC MEDIA SCANDAL : WATTS ) During the inquiry ... into the suicide of Dr. Kelly, Ms. Watts blew Mr. Gilligan's tendentious report out of the water. Ms. Watts released a tape of her last conversation with Dr. Kelly, who makes clear that he is not in a position to assert that Mr. Campbell inserted anything into the intelligence report. Ms. Watts said of her conversations with Dr. Kelly, "He didn't say to me that the dossier was transformed in the last week and he certainly didn't say that the 45-minute claim was inserted either by Alastair Campbell or by anyone else in government. In fact, he denied specifically that Alastair Campbell was involved in the conversation on May 30 . . . he was very clear to me that the claim was in the original intelligence." Ms. Watts testified ... that the BBC seemed primarily interested in corroborating Mr. Gilligan's account rather than in the merits of her own reports: "I felt under some considerable pressure to reveal my source. I also felt the purpose of that was to help corroborate the Andrew Gilligan allegations and not for any proper news purpose." And, "I was most concerned that there was an attempt to mold [ reports] so that they were corroborative which I felt was misguided and false." -- "The BBC's Sexed-up Report," WSJ.com ^ | Thursday, August 14, 2003 12:01 a.m. EDT | N/A OCTOBER 2003 Sunday : () A leading New York congressman is calling for an investigation into whether former U.S. diplomat Joseph C. Wilson IV violated CIA secrecy when he blew the lid off his role in a February 2002 mission to determine whether Iraq had sought uranium from Niger. For the last week, Mr. Wilson has been demanding a probe of the Bush administration's role in revealing his wife's job at the CIA, a move that he contends was an act of retaliation for his decision to go public about the Niger mission in a July op-ed piece for the New York Times. But Rep. Peter T. King, New York Republican, said Sunday that it's Mr. Wilson who needs to be investigated — and even prosecuted if he violated CIA secrecy. "I assume that if he went into this job for the CIA, he had to sign an oath of secrecy — a confidentiality" agreement, Mr. King told WABC Radio's Steve Malzberg. "And if he did, then he violated it and he should be prosecuted." Mr. King added: "He conducted a so-called 'secret' mission for the CIA. [However] he's talking about it all over national and international television — undermining the president of the United States. ... Why wasn't this guy called in before a grand jury?" Mr. King said that if the CIA didn't require Mr. Wilson to sign a confidentiality agreement, then the agency should explain why not — along with why it picked the talkative Mr. Wilson for the sensitive mission in the first place. "Why did they pick the guy who was anti-Bush, antiwar with Iraq, to go over and conduct a really [slapdash] investigation of Niger?" the House Homeland Security Committee member told Mr. Malzberg.---------Prosecute Wilson? (Uhhh...YES!) The Washington Times ^ | 7 Oct 03 | Greg Pierce SEE http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/996728/posts
NOVEMBER 16, 2003 : (REPORT : IRAQIS INFILTRATED UK GERM LABS ) ------ "Iraqis 'infiltrated UK germ labs'." BBC News ^ | Nov. 16, 2002 | BBC News
Thanks--very useful compilation!
"It will be years before any of this gets sorted out, I fear..."
I think so, too.
Especially in light of recent SVR assassinations in the UK... and perhaps the US.
My theory. They broke into his home a poisoned his medication. The wrists were cut after he passed out during his daily walk by one of the people who had him under surveillance. Of note, he was one of the world's most knowledgeable individuals regarding Iraq's secret CBN weapons programs and regarding Russian cheating on Biochem weapon treaties. He may have been on the verge of exposing Russian aid to both Iraq and Iran vis a vis WMD technology.
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