Posted on 11/22/2012 4:54:28 PM PST by lbryce
The latest estimates say that the Assad regime has hundreds of tons of mustard gas, a blister agent, and large stockpiles of sarin and possibly VX, both of which are nerve agents -- all of which can be launched by Scud missiles, artillery, or aircraft, according to Charles Blair, a specialist in chemical and biological weapons at the Federation of American Scientists. "I've heard that Syria has 100 to 200 missiles with nerve agents loaded and ready to go, but that seems extreme," said Blair, noting that the nerve agents are usually stored separately from the weapons and that exact estimates about the size of the regime's stockpile are almost impossible to come by.
Although the U.S. government has released only vague estimates as to the size of Syria's chemical and biological weapons stockpile, Dempsey told lawmakers in March that the arsenal was "100 times the magnitude we experienced in Libya." Libya acceded to the international Chemical Weapons Convention in 2004 and had largely destroyed its useful stockpile of such weapons by the time Qaddafi's regime fell in 2011, according to Blair.
(Excerpt) Read more at foreignpolicy.com ...
If Assad has this, it's better to keep him in power for him to use against the jihadis fighting him
if he loses, these weapons will be used against Israel
Actually, he had more pragmatic reasons for not using this --
1.he suspected the Soviets and Americans and Brits of having chemical weapons as well and if he started, then they would use it as well and no one had effective ways of stopping them
2. WWII was a lot more mobile than the trench warfare of WWI -- you drop gas on the enemy and you don't know if in 10 minutes your own troops will be over there, choking.
I doubt it’s from IRaq — the two Baathist nations hated each other.
He may use it against the Islamic jihadis who are fighting against him
if the "Syrian rebels" win (the guys we and France support), then those chemical weapons will pretty definitely be used against Israel
Exactly. Shia'ism is the milder form in comparison to Sunni'ism or Ibadi'ism.
It accepts "local forms" and tolerates Persian culture
you correctly pointed out that there are synagogues and Churches in Iran but none in Saudia
Saudi Arabia and militant Sunnis hate Jewish people, they heavily finance the spreading of islam across the world, building mosques in every country. Iran on the other hand make it clear when they talk about israel, they talk of zionism and the government not jewish people, there is a big difference. -- exactly. They're still evil, just the lesser evil
exactly.
Remember that before Gulf War I there were 3 sides in the Moslem fight: Sunnis, Shia's and secular Arab rules (Assad, Saddam, north Yemen, Tunisia) -- all three hated each other (alQaeda hated Saddam)
We knocked out Saddam when he could have been the ideal tool to fight Saudia and Iran. Gulf War I was a mistake -- and that made 9/11 and Gulf war II inevitable.
The only guys who would use the chemical weapons would be the Islamic jihadi "Syrian rebels" who are fighting Assad
Which is why Obama wants Assad to go....
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/08/23/libyas-deadliest-weapons-not-yet-controlled/
Libya's Deadliest Weapons Not Yet Controlled
Published August 23, 2011
Associated Press
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2715257/posts
Libyan rebels fear Gadhafi is preparing mustard gas
In this Thursday, April 21, 2011, photo, a Libyan rebel on horseback holds his weapon up during a march on behalf of prisoners of war and the missing in Benghazi, Libya. U.S. Sen. John McCain, one of the strongest proponents in Congress of the American military intervention in Libya, said Friday, April 22, 2011, that Libyan rebels fighting Moammar Gadhafi’s troops are his heroes.
Col. Moammar Gadhafi’s troops in and around the rebel-held western Libyan city of Misrata have been issued gas masks, a sign that the regime may be preparing to use chemical weapons, rebels told The Washington Times on Wednesday.
The regime is thought to have 9 tons of poisonous mustard gas at a secret desert location near Col. Gadhafi’s hometown, Sirte, multiple sources in Libya said.
In New York, a special prosecutor for the International Criminal Court appeared before the U.N. Security Council to describe what he called “evidence” of “widespread and systematic” attacks on civilians by Col. Gadhafi’s forces.
Rebels received what they called reliable eyewitness accounts from Misrata residents who reported seeing gas masks distributed to Col. Gadhafi’s forces, said Mohamed, a spokesman in Misrata who asked that his last name be withheld.
“We have alerted the town to that fact and what Gadhafi could be up to,” Mohamed said. “We don’t have gas masks. We don’t know how to deal with this, but we will defend our city with our lives.”
Over the past week, pro-Gadhafi forces have retreated to the town of Zliten, situated to Misrata’s west. The troops, which suffered heavy losses under a barrage of NATO airstrikes and rebel fire, are now being commanded by one of Col. Gadhafi’s sons, Al-Mutasim Gadhafi.
“Al-Mutasim is just as brutal as his father and quite capable of using chemical weapons,” said Moham
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2679761/posts
US concerned about security for mustard gas, chemicals in Libya
Proliferation analysts generally assess that Libya has close to 14 tons of mustard gas that it has not destroyed
U.S. military and intelligence officials are closely watching Libya's stockpiles of mustard gas and their precursor chemicals as the North African country descends further into civil war.
Proliferation analysts generally assess that Libya has close to 14 tons of mustard gas that it has not destroyed despite the announcement in 2003 that it would dismantle its weapons of mass destruction program.
“Obviously, the security of the Libyan stockpile of chemical weapons is a concern,” a U.S. intelligence official told The Washington Times.
“You could see a scenario where [Libyan dictator Moammar] Gadhafi takes troops away from these [stockpiles],” a Senate aide monitoring the situation in Libya said. “He could be pulling his security forces off of his missions, and bring them to Tripoli and Benghazi and other towns he needs to secure to hold on to his regime and, as a result, these facilities will be unguarded.”
On Wednesday, Libyans in the eastern part of the country celebrated their liberation from Col. Gadhafi and vowed to free the capital, Tripoli, where Gadhafi forces attacked protesters with heavy arms. In a rambling, nationally televised speech Tuesday, Col. Gadhafi vowed to die a “martyr.”
(Excerpt) Read more at homeland1.com ...
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2790916/posts
Gaddafi’s Chemical Weapons Factory Found
The al-Sadd battalion was guarding the chemical weapons factory and warehouse. However, the battalion has since withdrawn to Misratah, leaving a stockpile of deadly weapons vulnerable to theft.
The current number of guards at the chemical weapons site, which contains 9 tons of mustard gas and dozens of barrels contaminated with chemicals, is just two men armed with Kalashnikov rifles.
Hamzah al-Shaibani, spokesman for the “17 February revolution committee” said in a telephone interview with Asharq al-Awsat yesterday that: “We appeal to the United Nations and the Transitional National Council to protect and secure the area, because it represents a grave danger.”
Al-Shaibani said that a pungent stench has engulfed the area surrounding the chemical weapons store, “as a result of a slight leak inside the warehouse which we are afraid might become worse.”
The sources added that the warehouse containing chemical weapons and mustard gas is located in an open area of al-Ruwadah Valley, and is currently unsecured.
“anyone can access these weapons, and take whatever they want. Anyone who says that he is a revolutionary is granted a permit to enter unaccompanied, and he can take whatever weapons he wants without supervision, and without recording what kind of weapons he takes, including chemical substances.”
Experts from the United Nations arrived shortly after the revolutionaries took control of the region. The experts discovered leak in the chemical weapons warehouse, and decided to send a full team in the near future. However, to date, this team has not arrived.
Leading up to the site, a sign simply reads: “No Entry… Mustard Gas and Chemicals.” There is no barbed wire or fences.
http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2012/09/28/Panetta-lost-track-Syrian-WMDs
Panetta: We Lost Track of Syrian WMDs (September 28, 2012)
Saudi sponsored and created the Taliban and AlQaeda
To Sunnis, the "heresy" of Shias is worse than the beliefs of Christians or Jews
AlQaeda is irrevocably anti-Shia and by extension anti-Islam
al-Z hates the Shias and they would not work with them...
hizbullah, sponsored by Iran is fighting the Sunni jihadi rebels sponsored by AlQaeda and Saudia and Qatar
The Christians in Syria (10% to 20% of the population) would be slaughtered if the jihadis take over
Actually, not necessarily. I was reading the history of india by Kaye and pre-Islamic India didn't seem to have much of these conflicts
From what I understand their concept of warfare was a lot more ritual
“’Iran which is a paper tiger in this case compared to the real threat of militant sunni islam. Israel is wiped off the face of the planet when it will be surrounded by sunni extremists.’”
Yawn. Remember the MB and their pal the Grand Mufti? And Hitler? Been there. Done it. Israel hasn’t survived this long simply because none of our neighbors were serious about wiping us out. They all were. But they all interfered with each others’ efforts, lied to each other, and crossed signals and moves.
“Exactly. Shia’ism is the milder form in comparison to Sunni’ism or Ibadi’ism.”
Sure. And Khomeini was a prime example of that mildness. There are two kinds of Shiasm these days, the Quietist followers of Ali AlSistani, and the Khomeinists, among whom are Muqtada AlSadr and Ali Khameini. The latters have discredited themselves, giving an opportunity by default to the Sistani Quietists, but being pro-democracy and in favor of a sort of separation between Mosque and State might yet do them in, leaving the door open for a return of the Khomeinists to ascendancy.
It accepts “local forms” and tolerates Persian culture
Sometimes. You never can tell with the bleeding barstids. Depends who is in what mood at what time.
They're both evil, but the best alternative is to keep them fighting, rather than having Sunnis win
Thank you...
Yep - they told us there were only weapons enough for about 20% of the base because after a first strike that's all that would be left.
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