Saddam Behind Anthrax Attacks?

Accuracy In Media ^ | January 1, 2004 | Cliff Kincaid

[joinedafterattack]

In a major development, potentially as significant as the capture of Saddam Hussein, investigative journalist Richard Miniter says there is evidence to indicate Saddam’s anthrax program was capable of producing the kind of anthrax that hit America shortly after 9/11. Miniter, author of Losing bin Laden, told Accuracy in Media that during November he interviewed U.S. weapons inspector Dr. David Kay in Baghdad and that he was "absolutely shocked and astonished" at the sophistication of the Iraqi program.....Miniter said that Kay told him that, "the Iraqis had developed new techniques for drying and milling anthrax—techniques that were superior to anything the United States or the old Soviet Union had.....In a development that has received little media attention, an article in the November 28th issue of Science magazine focuses on the testimony of experts that the nature of the anthrax used against America.....

Full Article Here:
http://www.aim.org/publications/media_monitor/2004/01/01.html

[joinedafterattack]

Very Important Read

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[Semper Paratus]

If true the FBI owes one scientist and a couple of ponds in Maryland an apology.

[Prince Charles]

In a major development, potentially as significant as the capture of Saddam Hussein, investigative journalist Richard Miniter says there is evidence to indicate Saddam’s anthrax program was capable of producing the kind of anthrax that hit America shortly after 9/11. Miniter, author of Losing bin Laden, told Accuracy in Media that during November he interviewed U.S. weapons inspector Dr. David Kay in Baghdad and that he was "absolutely shocked and astonished" at the sophistication of the Iraqi program.

Miniter said that Kay told him that, "the Iraqis had developed new techniques for drying and milling anthrax—techniques that were superior to anything the United States or the old Soviet Union had. That would make the former regime of Saddam Hussein the most sophisticated manufacturer of anthrax in the world." Miniter said there are "intriguing similarities" between the nature of the anthrax that could be produced by Saddam and what hit America after 9/11. The key similarity is that the anthrax is produced in such a way that "hangs in the air much longer than anthrax normally would" and is therefore more lethal.

Nevertheless, the FBI has been operating on the assumption that it was produced by a disgruntled American scientist, perhaps in a basement. The FBI wasted hundreds of thousands of dollars investigating the possibility that the anthrax letters were packaged underwater in a Maryland pond in a special device of some sort.

In a development that has received little media attention, an article in the November 28th issue of Science magazine focuses on the testimony of experts that the nature of the anthrax used against America constituted a major advance in biological weapons technology. The article notes that analysts in the U.S. Army detected silica coatings on the anthrax sent to the U.S. Senate and that special chemicals were used to enhance its ability to form a lethal aerosol. One of those was a super-specialized binder chemical used to keep the silica particles in place on the surface of the spores.

One of the experts quoted in the article told us that, "In my opinion it would be impossible to manufacture a powder like this without state-sponsorship… These are super-specialized areas—and once it is understood just how difficult it is to process powders with these coatings, it becomes immediately obvious that only a highly disciplined state-sponsored program could have achieved this."

Many reports in the media, including Washington Post reporter Marilyn Thompson’s book on the anthrax attacks, have claimed that the Ames strain of anthrax used in the attacks was a U.S. "military strain" and was therefore probably made in the U.S. But experts say the Ames strain was provided to laboratories around the world. The expert told us that, "Far too much focus has been placed on the genetic and DNA analysis of the senate anthrax" which has identified it as the Ames strain. "The real key to finding out who did it is not the DNA analysis, but the analysis of the coatings that were used." He said David Kay should be looking for scientists in Iraq who have developed this technology.

Cliff Kincaid is the Editor of the AIM Report and can be reached at aimeditor@yahoo.com

[ironman]

Link to first posting
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1050309/posts

[piasa]

1998 - "Man suspected of having anthrax predicted attack ; Harris told talk show Iraqis poised to strike," CNN

[cookcounty]

wow.

[Pro-Bush]

Bump/Ping

[Allan]

Already posted

[Smogger]

Nevertheless, the FBI has been operating on the assumption that it was produced by a disgruntled American scientist, perhaps in a basement. The FBI wasted hundreds of thousands of dollars investigating the possibility that the anthrax letters were packaged underwater in a Maryland pond in a special device of some sort.

This is old news. I read an article in the LA Times almost a year ago that said the FBI made a mistake in pursuing the domestic terrorist angle. The antrhax was clearly state sponsored, but they wasted valuable time looking at domestic suspects. It was well known that Iraq had a sohpisticated Antrax program.

I think I read the Science article. Someone posted it. It said the American scientists could only recreate it using very sophisticated processes.

[Cicero]

It may be old news, but about the only place it's being reported is here in FreeRepublic. The FBI will never get off their butts if they aren't prodded on this. Sessions is either a moron or a traitor. He has not put a leash on a single one of the clintonoids at the top of the bureau.

[aristeides]

If true the FBI owes one scientist and a couple of ponds in Maryland an apology.

Not just an apology. What about a few million bucks?

[okie01]

"Sessions is either a moron or a traitor."

Pssssst! Sessions has been gone since 1993. Bubba fired him just before Vince Foster was found in Fort Marcy Park.

Louis Freeh's time has come and gone, too. The current "moron or traitor" is Robert Mueller.

[John H K]

Make me a case as to why Iraq had a specific beef against Daschle and Leahy, out of the hundreds of prominent government figures they could have sent letters to.

(Sound of crickets in the background)

[Smogger]

Whoever sent those letter knew that they would never be opened or read by Dashcle and Leahy. They knew how potent that weaponized Anthrax was. They wanted to see what would happen when they put it in the mail. I bet it exceeded their wildest expectations.

[joinedafterattack]

My brother was in Special Forces for 28 years and his explanation of the whole thing is that it was a test of how we as a country would respond. Trying to explain why one Senator got it over another is not material. How else do you explain that one letter had weaponized anthrax and the others did not. It was a test to see the results to be analyzed for a future attack.

Before we went into Iraq my brother said we would not find WMD. He stated, and this may be the case, that if he were Saddam he would have destroyed all but 1 to 2 litters of anthrax. You don't need more than this to create major harm and the chance of hiding it to never be found it increased with such a small amount. If one weaponized letter of anthrax to a senator could potentially kill 100,000 people you don't need more than a litter.

[Boot Hill]

John H K asks:   "Make me a case as to why Iraq had a specific beef against Daschle and Leahy..."

Your question is flawed because it presumes something not in evidence, i.e., "Iraq had a specific beef". If you remove the presumption, then your question answers itself, they were targeted simply because they were prominent government officials.

--Boot Hill

[JustPiper]

Unless specified we cannot post the article in its entirety, we should, the other thread could and did not

[JustPiper]

BumPing!

[muawiyah]

Or, not merely prominant government officials, but those with a Capital Hill mailing address.

A terrorist who knew the routing single-piece FCM might take from entry at Boca Raton to DC could have been aiming to disable several important postal facilities.