[FairOpinion]

I have confidence in the reporting of this journalist, his original article was well researched and he broke the story. Others ended up just repeating it, and quoting anonymous sources speculating that the IAEA was already aware of this.

Here is the link to the original article, in case any of you missed it -- it has a lot of detail, that was not reproduced in later articles by others. http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/search/s_128200.html

PS. I am putting this in breaking news, because this contains new info, the other articles rehashing this info or trying to discredit it were posted in Front page or extended news.

Note,in this article:

"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. "

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[FairOpinion]

ping

I just found this.

I was hoping that he will do more research and he did, has some more good info.

[TC Rider]

"Yellowcake Facility"

Yellowcake is an intermediate step in the process of refining uranium. Yellowcake is processed from the uranium ore. Seems like there was a story in the past year about suspicions that Iraq had gotten yellowcake from Brazil. Makes you wonder what documents the Iraqi embassy in Brazil was shredding the other day.

[eyespysomething]

"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. "

You mean, while Saddam was in power, these people weren't willing to talk? I am shocked I tell ya.

I thought inspections would work < /sarcasm>

[RaceBannon]

major bump

[Scott from the Left Coast]

Very informative article. Good post.

[EllaMinnow]

"Between and below Al-Tuwaitha's rose gardens and palm groves, Marines have found stockpiles of artillery shells, chemical drums from Russia and locked bunkers and storage rooms.

"It's like walking through a diabolical Disneyland," said Marine Sgt. J. J. Turner of Charleston, S.C., as he peered into locked biological laboratories deserted nearly a month ago when the war began.

"See, the beakers are still setting there. There are cultures growing in them. I sure don't want to go in and see what's in them. Leave that to the Army."



It's got BIO too?

[ellery]

btttt

[Ken H]

The Pentagon team also began interviewing a former nuclear physicist and an engineer who recently worked at Al-Tuwaitha.

Sounds like the US is finding some of the people they've been looking for.

[concerned about politics]

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

I think we'll be seeing a lot more guys like these two in the near future.

[EternalVigilance]

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.

Cowards.

[tutstar]

ping

[Carry_Okie]

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.

Not exactly an appropriate sense of urgency, or a high level of confidence in their own process.

These IAEA authorities insisted they had extensively probed Al-Tuwaitha when they returned, and had begun to make significant progress before hostilities broke out between Iraq and the United States.

How significant does it have to be? If there was anything significantly different from the last time they were there the flag should have gone up. It didn't.

"To date we have found no evidence or plausible indication of the revival of a nuclear weapons program in Iraq," wrote IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradeiin his final report on Iraqi inspections in March.

Dirty bomb development notwithstanding.

I hate bureaucrats.

[Smedley]

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.

Amazing. Placing a U.N. seal on this stuff was enough?

[FairOpinion]

ping

Follow to the original article which broke the story, that you posted first on FR ( before the rest of the media started to cover it)

[Wissa]

"See, the beakers are still setting there. There are cultures growing in them. I sure don't want to go in and see what's in them. Leave that to the Army."

That reminds me. I have dishes to wash.

[Lael]

The main difference between weapons-grade plutonium and reactor-grade plutonium is the percentage of different isotopes, according to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Weapons-grade contains more of the isotope plutonium-239 than reactor-grade plutonium.

Yes!!!

When you are making Weapons grade Plutonium, you 'cook' the fuel rods for a relatively SHORT period of time, Maximumizing PU-239, and minimizing PU-240.

Power Reactors are left on line longer to get electricity, increasing PU-240.

The whole key to fissionable material is that it have an ODD atomic weight...thus U-235, U-233 [made by cooking Thorium in a Reactor], and PU-239 can be set off by ANY stray neutrons at all!

If you try to use Reactor Grade Plutonium, you must separate PU-239 from PU-240...Much more difficult than separating U-235 from U-238.

I'm betting it is Weapons Grade Plutonium!

[justshutupandtakeit]

It should be remembered that "weapons" grade material is not necessary. For a dirty bomb I'll bet you that this material would be highly effective.

That was always the real fear that terrorists would use "dirty bombs" despite the mythology of nuclear devices in the hands of terrorists.

Saddam's danger has been clearly revealed, the use of terrorists recruited from all over the Middle East. These killers are the last gasp there now but have been there for years and shuffled in and out of the terrorist camps there and in Syria, Iran, Lebanon,Yemen, and probably N.Koran. :^)

[Teetop]

What the F&$%!?

http://www.iaea.or.at/worldatom/Programmes/ActionTeam/nwp2.html#facilit

I just stumbled on this site......IAEA no less!

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Thanks!

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