US calls off search for weapons of mass destruction ( barf alert, this is a troop reduction)

The Irish Times ^ | Jan 9, 2004

[gobucks]

The Bush administration has quietly withdrawn a 400-member military team it sent to Baghdad to scour Iraq for evidence of unconventional weapons, write Conor O'Clery in New York & Deaglán de Bréadún in Dublin.

The move indicates that the US does not now expect to find illegal weapons, the main reason given by President Bush for the war last year that toppled Saddam Hussein.

At the same time, a prestigious Washington-based research foundation, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, has published a scathing report on President Bush's case for war.

The US weapons team, whose withdrawal was reported yesterday by the New York Times, is the key unit of a 1,400-member US survey group sent to find weapons of mass destruction. Head of the group Mr David Kay is in Washington with his deputy, Gen Keith Dayton, and may quit his post soon, the paper also reported.

[gobucks]

Liberals will now start screaming...I'll need earplugs, and aspirin.

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[mewzilla]

Gee, last time I knew there were about 1500 folks involved in the search. How does 400 hundred of them going home mean they've called off the search? Especially in light of the miles of docs they're still trying to translate...

[KantianBurke]

For some odd reason I think the Kurds aren't going to be too upset about this news.

[Momaw Nadon]

1,400 - 400 = 1,000

[gobucks]

Good point --- and maybe this is liberal bait to see if they'll bite, and thus look all the more silly in a few weeks/months. I think Koch was right that something will turn up....(I just loved it that he came out and endorsed Bush).

[Bogey78O]

If you have to go to Ireland to get the news just assume it's a non-story.

[gobucks]

You must have been home schooled :)

[mewzilla]

It's toro excretio to my mind. I wish we could say we screwed up. I'd prefer that to the thought that these things are still out there and we don't know where.

[Bush Cheney]

It is obvious Saddam did everything he could to get rid of these things. Saddam reads the paper. He knows what we were going in for. Either they are all buried, or moved out to a neighboring country. Do you really think he would keep his stockpile stacked in a warehouse for eager U.S. troops to stumble upon?

[gov_bean_ counter]

You can't trust anyone who spells Conor with one "n".

[Diogenesis]

Ignored AGAIN in this article.

========= Chemical Warhead found in Kirkuk =============

Chemical warhead found at an Iraqi air base, marked with a green band,
the symbol for chemical weaponry. Trace amounts of a nerve agent were found
at two spots along the ~meter-long warhead. These amounts are consistent with
leakage from the chemically armed weapon. A 13-foot missile was found next to it.

---

========= IRAQI WEAPONS from France USED Against US and Coalition Heroes ========

French missiles were found by the Poles, and to protect France, blown up.

The pompous froggies said they did not say "2003". Decide for yourself.

---

========= Mass Graves =========

In Najaf, skull unearthed from yet another mass grave of Saddam.

---

========= Halabja =========

Dead children, previously playing in Halabja
Victims of Saddams' WMD in March 1988.

---

=========== Documents linking Atta, Saddam, Nidal, bin Ladin ===========

Handwritten letter dated Feb. 19, 1998 linking bin Laden and Saddam Hussein
discussing arrival of a secret envoy sent by bin Laden to Iraq.
The signature beneath the letter is a codename, "MDA" - the Mukhabarat.

---

=========== 911 Atrocities ===========

Those who do not learn from the PAST or who profit by such terror,
again condemn innocent Americans to repeat it.

[Visalia]

I didn't know we were searching for WMD in Ireland.

[gobucks]

Now that's disquieting...but no more so than the reports I've seen of those russian suit case nukes that haven't been accounted for.

[gobucks]

Well, it's tomorrow there, and I actually saw the first link of it in Google news...

[b4its2late]

If the Irish Times is anything like the NY Times or the LA Times, I have trouble believing this.... unless of course they are moving the inspectors secretly into Syria.

[Beck_isright]

We've already found them. We just have to wait for our factories to manufacture enough cruise missles to take out the enemy in Lebanon and Syria.

[eskimo]

The Bush administration has quietly withdrawn a 400-member military team it sent to Baghdad to scour Iraq for evidence of unconventional weapons,...

Perhaps they already know when and where they will be found. They have to be found; that is the only thing that can kick off the next act of this political soap opera.

[gobucks]

Syria's my guess...

[mewzilla]

Maybe this means the president will have something to report during his SOTU speech.