Team Inspects suspected plutonium site (update by the journalist who broke original story, NEW info)

Pittsburgh Tribune Review ^ | April 11, 2003 | Carl Prine

[FairOpinion]

SOUTH OF BAGHDAD: A scout team from the Pentagon's Defense Threat Reduction Agency arrived in a convoy Thursday at the Al-Tuwaitha nuclear complex, beginning a probe that could take weeks to determine whether plutonium is present at the massive nuclear facility and extensive underground complex.

[MizSterious]

The Pentagon team also began interviewing a former nuclear physicist and an engineer who recently worked at Al-Tuwaitha. The two men told the Marines they would show coalition investigators "everything we didn't show the inspectors" from the IAEA. "

Thanks for the ping--there are many other "quoteables" in the article, but this one is truly intriguing.

[MizSterious]

Broke seals at 14 different buildings? Broke seals at the site of huge underground caverns of "heavy water?" I don't think so.

In earlier articles, one of the "sources" that said "the Marines did it" was an "unnamed" ex-inspector, which, I suspect, is weasel-speak for Scott Ritter. I seriously doubt the Marines broke any seals, but later in this article it mentions a more likely possibility--looters and/or Iraqi officials.

[MizSterious]

Good find! Thanks for posting this!

[MizSterious]

Yes, there are still a lot of questions, but my own suspicion about the "Marines breaking the seals" story is that it's just trying to take the spotlight off of the real issue. I doubt it happened, but if I'm right, it's right out of the Clinton crime family playbook--when someone's got the goods on you, then bring up someone else's flaws.

[ffusco]

Mmmm.........Yellowcake!

It's enriched!

[Maeve]

Big Bump

And a big thank you to Lady in Blue, a truly great Freeper!

[Maeve]

Take that map and multiply it by 80 per cent and I bet we would approach reality on the number of hidden facilities.

Big prayer issue for me is our POWs and MIAs -- if they are in a hidden prison, may they be found and rescued today!

[txrangerette]

Agreed! They don't need nuke energy;
they're awash in OIL !!!

[Illbay]

"Don't invade Iraq!
Inspections work.
War won't."

[FairOpinion]

This is a follow up article.
Suggest you read the original at:

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/search/s_128200.html

As for the UN seals, after the original article got some exposure in other media, some news articles appeared quoting "an unnamed person, who spoke on condition of anonimity" , who was NOT speaking in any official capacity, and claimed that "it is most likely nothing new and the marines probably just broke the UN seals on some "known" uranium". Of course there was this little problem that the UN inspectors apparently never even found some of the places the Marines found.

So basically, as far as I can see and this article and the original one describes, it sounds like, sure there were some known materials here,(and maybe the locals broke the seals on those, maybe not) but also some major NEW find of nuclear material, which may be weapons grade plutonium.

[FairOpinion]

It seems that many of you didn't read the original article, and that is why you have some questions.

This is a follow up article.
I highly recommend reading the original at:

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/search/s_128200.html

The history was that this journalist, Carl Prine broke the original story, and it took a day or so, before the rest of the media picked it up.

As for the UN seals, after the original article got some exposure in other media, some news articles appeared quoting "an unnamed person, who spoke on condition of anonimity" , who was NOT speaking in any official capacity, and claimed that "it is most likely nothing new and the marines probably just broke the UN seals on some "known" uranium". Of course there was this little problem that the UN inspectors apparently never even found some of the places the Marines found.

So basically, as far as I can see and this article and the original one describes, it sounds like, sure there were some known materials here,(and maybe the locals broke the seals on those, maybe not) but also some major NEW find of nuclear material, which may be weapons grade plutonium.

In fact, I think Carl Prine wrote this follow up article to "gently" debunk that UN seal story. That whether or not those seals were broken, there sure seems like there is MUCH more there, than what the UN was aware of.

[FairOpinion]

"Has any of this been on ABCNNBCBS or the ....etc."

-----

Yes, but their version, based on "unnamed source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, who is familiar with the UN inspection PROCESS", dismissed it, as "the Marines just found something the UN already knew of, and the Marines just broke some UN seals.

Does anyone get the feeling that this person who didn't want to be named and didn't KNOW anything, other than being "familiar with the UN inspection PROCESS" may have been Scott Ritter?

[Grampa Dave]

You are correct. Their unnamed source could have well been that great war critic and pervert, Scotty the Pervert!

[blackie]

We got the head chemical guy today!

Let's Roll!

[justshutupandtakeit]

There has been a lot of crap spread by so-called experts. OBL has nuclear weapons. Saddam has five nuclear bombs. Blah, blah, blah.

I suspect they are just rumors. Or it would have been used prior to the war or during in.

[laz17]

Instead, the Marines apparently broke U.N. seals designed to ensure materials aren't diverted for weapons use or end up in the wrong hands.

Iraqi #1: Hey, Achmed, Saddam says he wants this stuff diverted for weapons. Give me hand, will you?
Iraqi #2: Okay, Mohammed. Let's -- oops. What's this here?
Iraqi #1: Looks like a seal.
Iraqi #2: It's light blue, and it's got the UN logo on it.
Iraqi #1: Damn. You know what that means, don't you?
Iraqi #2: Yup. We can't use this stuff.
Iraqi #1: That's what I thought. You want to tell Saddam?
Iraqi #2: Are you kidding? YOU tell him.
Iraqi #1: No way. Not ME.
Iraqi #2: So what do we do?
Iraqi #1: Let's get Abdul to tell him.
Iraqi #2: Sounds good to me. Hey, Abdul! Come over here!

[laz17]

Speaking on condition of anonymity, IAEA investigators said they would be "surprised, but not necessarily shocked" if coalition scientists uncovered illegal atomic weapons production at Al-Tuwaitha.

They'll also be saddened, disappointed, and deeply concerned.

[laz17]

The two men told the Marines they would show coalition investigators "everything we didn't show the inspectors" from the IAEA

You mean they kept secrets from ElBuddyBoy? Who would have thought it?

[American in Israel]

I don't understand why they would need a nuclear power program at all.

It is a bit strange in a land that oil pumps itself out of the ground to spend billions on making a nuclear reactor that burns fuel you cannot supply yourself.

Build a generator that runs on free fuel or a generator that runs on the most expensive fuel on the planet. Oh decisions, decisions, life is rough for a dictator...

[AFPhys]

The Pentagon team also began interviewing a former nuclear physicist and an engineer who recently worked at Al-Tuwaitha. The two men told the Marines they would show coalition investigators "everything we didn't show the inspectors" from the IAEA. "

Gotta ping this quote yet again...