EVIL PROOF [Brits Find Bunker Full of WMD's in S. Iraq Oil Fields]

The Daily Telegraph ^ | March 28, 2003 | Bruce Wilson

[k2blader]

EVIL PROOF
By BRUCE WILSON in London
28mar03

BRITISH troops have uncovered a bunker full of weapons of mass destruction in the southern Iraqi oilfields.

The Ministry of Defence released a dramatic video it said showed more than 100 chemical warfare protection suits and mounds of dozens of artillery rounds it said contained suspected "weapons of mass destruction".

It was not immediately clear if the weapons contained chemical or biological warheads. They were not believed to be nuclear.

The bunker had been recently deserted by fleeing Iraqi troops attacked by a unit from the Irish Guards, a spokesman said.

The film showed Guardsmen turning over chemical suits and standing beside piles of shells said to contain the deadly warheads.

For security reasons, the MoD would not locate the bunker beyond saying it was in the middle of an oilfield.

It added that British troops had managed to put out some of the fires started by the Iraqis as part of their "scorched oil" policy.

British Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon said the find "proves categorically" that Iraq is ready to use weapons of mass destruction against allied forces.

The issue of protective gear to Iraqi troops in the south of the country had already indicated that Saddam Hussein may be considering the use of chemical or biological weapons, but fresh evidence uncovered over the past few days had proved it beyond doubt, Mr Hoon said.

He tried to contrast Saddam's readiness to use such weapons with the coalition's efforts to avoid civilian casualties, and repeated claims that missiles that killed at least 14 civilians in Baghdad yesterday may have been Iraqi rather than allied.

Reporters in Baghdad said the missile had almost certainly come from an allied aircraft.

The discovery of the weapons of mass destruction came at a time when British armour was preparing to fight what defence officials said was its biggest tank battle since World War II.

There has been a fear since the campaign started that elite Iraqi troops would be ordered to use chemical or biological weapons.

The well-built bunker shown in the film looked as if it had been occupied by well-equipped soldiers. However, they apparently fled without a fight.

Mr Hoon urged the public not to allow individual setbacks and delays to distract them from the overall picture of the campaign, which, he said. was unfolding successfully.

He said: "Coalition forces are making good progress in overcoming the resistance of the Iraqi security forces with great courage and resilience.

"This campaign is only in its eighth day. We all wish to see a speedy end to conflict.

"The campaign is going to plan. We are, with our coalition partners, involved in a deliberate and cautious endeavour. We will not stop until Saddam Hussein and his appalling regime has fallen from power and weapons of mass destruction are dismantled.

"We have time to see this through. Saddam Hussein's time is running out."

[MississippiMan]

I've seen a couple stories on this discovery from the UK press. The only mention I've seen from the American media, however, was CBN, the Christian Broadcasting Network. When our media finally have no choice but to cover a major WMD discovery, it's really gonna break their hearts.

MM

[k2blader]

Looks like this story is another dud. Dang...

But I still think we'll find some eventually.

[kcvl]

Australians in front-line spots

28mar03
AUSTRALIANS on exchange with the American and British military were fighting in front-line positions in Iraq, Commander of Australian Forces in the Middle East Brigadier Maurie McNarn said yesterday.

While 150 Special Air Service (SAS) troops are widely regarded as the only combat ground troops of Australia's 2000-strong deployment to Iraq, Brig. McNarn revealed about 33 Australians were also serving in various roles with coalition partners.

"There are a number of them who are certainly in harm's way at the moment," Brig McNarn said.

"But I don't want to go into the specifics of where they are, partly because they're with a unit that will be covering a large amount of ground. I don't want to create an impression that they're doing things that they aren't."

Australian exchange service people were involved in air, sea as well as land operations.

"They're in a range of British and American units; some ground units, some on ships at sea and some in air elements," Brig McNarn said.

"Most of these units are moving fairly fast.

"In terms of the navy, obviously they're out in various units in the Gulf and they tend to move constantly. We have a number of people on exchange with the air force, some are flying, some are with ground support."

With experts tipping that RAAF F/A-18 jets and SAS troops would not be used in urban warfare, exchange military personnel could be the only Australians engaged in the predicted bloody city campaigns.

Meanwhile, coalition forces announced plans to step up attacks on Iraq. A senior official at US Central Command said forecasts indicated "pretty good weather" in the next three days.

The worst sandstorm in decades, with winds whipping at 80km/h and upward, began on Tuesday and stalled thousands of soldiers headed toward Baghdad.

The sandstorm did not stop Iraq firing a missile at Kuwait yesterday but it was intercepted by a Patriot battery, a Kuwaiti Defence Ministry spokesman said.

•British troops had uncovered a bunker full of weapons of mass destruction in the southern Iraqi oilfields, Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon said late last night. The Ministry of Defence released a dramatic video it claimed showed more than 100 chemical warfare protection suits and mounds of dozens of artillery rounds it said contained "weapons of mass destruction".

[Illbay]

As soon as the US/Britain announce that they have definitely found WMD's then the public relations reason for Saddam NOT to use them becomes moot. As soon as he's caught, then he loses nothing by using them.

I've thought of this as well. But then they announce the suits, etc., just as a pretext to warn Saddam not to use them.

JOB ONE is to protect the troops.

[lasereye]

"British Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon said the find "proves categorically" that Iraq is ready to use weapons of mass destruction against allied forces."

I think he was referring to the suits, not the warheads.

[tutstar]

Yes, He's going to stop global warming.

[Illbay]

I didn't see the "dud" part. What do you mean?

[mrb1960]

This had better be legit because I'm getting tired of hearing how everytime we supposedly find something it turns out to be nothing.

[Doc On The Bay]

Well, we Might as well use "Tactical 'Nukes" ; Since we'll be Vilified Anyway, We might as well resolve our CONTEMPT Of Iraqi Irregular "Forces" by an Honest attempt to avoid an Utterly Justifiable NUCLEAR RESPONSE!!

& God Help Us!

[marshmallow]

The reason this is not more widely reported is because there is nothing definitive in this article. The key paragraph is as follows;

The Ministry of Defence released a dramatic video it said showed more than 100 chemical warfare protection suits and mounds of dozens of artillery rounds it said contained suspected "weapons of mass destruction".

What this boils down to folks, is 100 chemical warfare suits and some artillery rounds. If and when these are tested and found to contain chemical or biological agents, this will become a story. Until then, it is another media "beat up".

[Beck_isright]

Sorry, more bogus reporting. Tom Daschle, the "Beacon of Truth" questioned this and was "saddened" that no one believed him. Plus God Forbid Hans Blix be proven wrong. And the frog bastards. And the Belgian qu**rs. And the Russian liars. And the German nazi wannabes. And the Canadian cowards. And the Indonesian terrorist supporters. And the dorks from Sweden. And the liars from Libya. And the scum from Sudan. And the "Religion of Peace" nation of Iran. Nor those fun loving Cameroonians (?). Or those wimpified Angolans. And let's not forget the insightful commentary from the brave 0-20 in major wars Mehicans. Or the pathetic island of Cuba. Did I leave anyone out?

V

[Klein-Bottle]

The discovery of the weapons of mass destruction came at a time when British armour was preparing to fight what defense officials said was its biggest tank battle since World War II.

The results of the tank battle, according to Fox, was the Iraqis lost all fourteen tanks, and the British lost none. While it was nowhere near the largest tank battle since WWII, lets say we just scored one for the good guys.

BTW, it is truly amazing that we have less than 20 KIA in a war that involves moving 100,000 troops several hundred miles through enemy territory in a week. I’m surprised we don’t have more casualties just due to accidents with these twenty-year old tank and truck drivers. Maybe the insurance companies should rethink their premiums for young men.

[VMI70]

I'm sure he was, but it is puffery at best; purposely misleading at worst.

[allodialman]

msmbc-bagcam....looks like hugh fire on horizon

[Reborn]

Is THIS what you're thinking of?

http://www.boston.com/dailynews/086/world/U_S_forces_begin_resupply_at_B:.shtml

U.S. forces begin resupply at 'Bush International Airport' By Denis D. Gray, Associated Press, 3/27/2003 10:36 TALLIL AIRFIELD, Southern Iraq (AP) The first U.S. airplane landed Thursday at a key Iraqi airfield, which forces informally renamed ''Bush International Airport.'' The captured airfield is expected to be a major resupply base and transport hub for American forces. A C-130 transport plane glided down onto a 12,000-foot runway newly cleared of concrete blocks, wrecked vehicles and other barriers placed on the strip by the Iraqi military to prevent its use.

A hastily erected sign at the airfield's entrance read ''Bush International Airport'' for the U.S. president. The sprawling base is located four miles from Nasiriyah where U.S. Marines are trying to root out resistance by groups loyal to Saddam Hussein's regime, such as the Fedayeen militia. The airfield, second in size only to Saddam International Airport in Baghdad, had been out of use since the establishment of the no-fly zone following the 1991 Gulf War. The zones were set up to protect Iraq's majority Shiite Muslims in the south of the country and the Kurds in the north.

Tallil's main runway, once used by Iraqi jet fighters, is long enough to take the military's largest transport planes, as well as civilian jumbo jets. Tallil sits astride a major logistics corridor for U.S. forces, running from Kuwait toward Baghdad. Aircraft flying in could help speed the flow of supplies from Kuwait to troops in the field. ''It's been sitting in a time warp, waiting for someone to wake it up,'' said Col. A. Myers of the U.S. Air Force Air Mobility Command. His unit, from Scott Air Force Base in Illinois, had the mission to revive it.

The airbase, overrun by the U.S. 3rd Infantry Division on March 22, had been only partially occupied and maintained in the past decade. Jumbles of rusting equipment were strewn around the derelict control tower and U.S. troops were clearing out ramshackle buildings before moving in. Regular air traffic was expected in coming days, weather permitting.

[piasa]

There's no inconsistency there. I presume you mean that there is a possibility they could be conventional shells, too. I don't think conventional explosive warheads resemble warheads designed to disperse (but not heat) chemicals or biological agents. Heating from explosives might render biochemical weapons useless by incinerating the contents before they can do any "good" - sort of the way the first WTC bombing didn't go as planned because the explosive blast neutralized the cyanide gas and rendered it harmless.

The shells are apparently not the type containing a typical explosive warhead, but are of a type that could be used only for nonexplosive, chemical or biological substances- the latter are designed to disperse the substances, not kill with fire, concussion, and shrapnell. That would make them look different since the function is markedly different; a visual inspection will make it clear they aren't conventional explosive types so that possibility is not on the table. That leaves them with the other possibilities, which are either biological or chemical, and that might require testing to determine exactly what the substance is.

[k2blader]

Well, the original article says:
"The Ministry of Defence released a dramatic video it said showed more than 100 chemical warfare protection suits and mounds of dozens of artillery rounds it said contained suspected 'weapons of mass destruction'."

In post #37:
"Mr Hoon later admitted that the evidence [the chem suits cache?] was 'obviously not conclusive' evidence that the Iraqis were set to use chemical weapons against UK or US troops. But he added: "It's clearly indicative of an intention; otherwise why equip his own forces to deal with a threat which he knows we do not have? So it must only be to protect his forces from his own use of those weapons."

Notice no mention of the "suspected 'weapons of mass destruction'" in the 2nd article. Why is that?

I guess there are a few possibilities:
1. They're not WMD's after all.
2. They don't yet know if they are WMD's (the stuff is still in the lab being tested).
3. They are WMD's, and you and peeve23 are on to something.

Any others?

[Ethyl]

The Pentagon wants the focus on the war. There's plenty of time to get the word out about the Iraqi WMDs afterward.


If this is true, it needs to be put out now, not later. It will hopfully put an end the endless taunts from the dems and sadams's soldiers that they have no WMDs. It would be a huge upswing for USA supporters around the world, it might even bring around some unbelievers.

[Kevin Curry]

Saddam buried the worst stuff deep a long time ago. We won't just stumble across it. We'll have to search very hard for it.

[k2blader]

Yep, I keep thinking much of it is deep under one or two of his palaces...