[PISANO]

They have this on FILM? Anyone hear this from another source. Haven't heard a thing about this.

[Ruger1099]

It won't matter to anyone. If the Brits found it, it means they planted it. Americans could die from chemical attack and the Arabs would say we launched them on ourselves.

[Porterville]

Emailed Drudge, lets see if he puts it up.

[Mister Baredog]

Very interesting, calling Dr. Blix, uhoh. Did anyone else hear that the troops that took a large airport in Northern Iraq yesterday have named it BUSH INTERNATIONAL

[VMI70]

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

Is this the true headline?

Now stay with me on this--Are there any inconsistencies in the following quotes from the article?

"EVIL PROOF [Brits Find Bunker Full of WMD's in S. Iraq Oil Fields]" (That is the headline) then the following from the story:

"It was not immediately clear if the weapons contained chemical or biological warheads"

"...piles of shells said to contain the deadly warheads."

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

Strange

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[Green]

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

I'll surmise that the reporters have about as much qualification to make this determination as I do (which is none at all! ).

[k2blader]

This looks like another (earlier) article on the same story:

BBC News - 'Proof' of biological weapons found

[Eva]

Interesting that the BBC report left out the mentions of artillery rounds or warheads. The BBC insinuated that the chemical suits and gas masks were not necessarily "proof".

[knak]

bumping to follow up later

[Gasshog]

said contained suspected "weapons of mass destruction".

key word...not too reliable Id say

[Pagey]

I'm sure " Hans 'I am worthless' Blix" mind is racing as to how he is going to find a way to make this stuff disappear too.

[Carry_Okie]

Bump to self

[wardaddy]

I would like a reliable source ...in fact a multiple source dog and pony show...BUT,

They have them...make no mistake. They have used them against their own folks and Iran and we have found stashes of gas gear and intercepted alleged orders for the diehards to use them etc.

Does anyone really think they've destroyed all their WMDs?

I sure don't.

[peeve23]

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'm convinced we're not announcing these things so that he will continue NOT to start using them in the early stages of the conflict.

He would have used them in the final stages in any case -- when his back's against the wall -- but why give him reason to use them earlier?

[Illbay]

Could this be it?

[k2blader]

Hoon withdraws claim that protection suits are 'proof' of chemical weapons
By Paul Waugh Deputy Political Editor
28 March 2003

Geoff Hoon, the Defence Secretary, was forced yesterday to retract claims that the discovery of more than 100 bio-chemical protection suits in Iraq was "categorical" proof that Saddam Hussein was preparing to use weapons of mass destruction.

The Ministry of Defence revealed that the Royal Irish Regiment discovered the suits and gas masks, which were in good working order, in a command post abandoned by Iraqi troops in the Rumaila oilfield of southern Iraq.

Mr Hoon originally told a press briefing at the MoD that the find showed categorically that "the Iraqi regime is prepared to use weapons of mass destruction". But when a reporter pointed out that similar suits were used by Iraq in the 1980s to protect against chemical attack from Iran, Admiral Sir Michael Boyce, the Chief of Defence Staff, conceded that the equipment found was not offensive. "There is no evidence so far in what we've found," he said. "They ought to be defensive protection suits and respirators and so forth ... So far we didn't find anything which was offensive, no." The kit was "effective, well cared for and in good working order", he added.

Mr Hoon later admitted that the evidence 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."

Mr Hoon repeated Tony Blair's warning this week that any Iraqi commander who sanctions the use of such weapons would be committing a war crime and "will be held personally responsible for his action".

Iraqi PoWs have given details to US forces of chemical protection suits issued to them, but until now no clear evidence had been found.

The MoD showed a film recorded in recent days of soldiers from the Royal Irish Regiment searching a recently deserted Iraqi command position in the Rumaila oilfield. Sir Michael said the Iraqi troops had "left in a hurry", abandoning equipment and paperwork, which was now being examined by intelligence staff. Sir Michael added that the documentation may offer information about Iraq's plans to use weapons of mass destruction.

"The use of chemical and biological weapons against our forces has always been one of our chief concerns," he said. "We certainly remember the terrible results of their use in the past, and making sure that the regime does not get the opportunity to deploy these weapons has been a high priority in our planning and target selection."

Mr Hoon said no non-lethal chemical weapons such as CS gas had been used in the campaign by the UK. Britain was fully signed up to the Chemical Weapons Convention which prohibited the use of such weapons in conflict.

Independent.co.uk - Hoon withdraws claim that protection suits are 'proof' of chemical weapons

[Illbay]

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

Based on what? I mean, what expertise to these reporters possess? They all have Iraqi Interior Ministry handlers.

[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

[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".