Excellent post nwctwx. The following is a post I made on another thread to someone who, in a shrill voice, was denouncing anyone who dared think AQ might have nukes, as a scaremonger.
Al Qaeda terrorists and related groups are set to use chemical, biological and nuclear weapons in deadly strikes, according to a new CIA report.
Washington Times
"Usama bin Laden's terror network claims to have bought ready-made nuclear weapons (search) on the black market in central Asia, the biographer of Al Qaeda's No. 2 leader was quoted as telling an Australian television station"
Fox News
"Administration officials said Sunday the emphasis on radiation detection has grown in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks and in response to fears that the al Qaeda terrorist network may succeed in its ambition to obtain either a nuclear device or materials to spread radiation in an urban area."
ABCNews
"he thought that al-Qaeda may already have a nuclear device and is simply looking for an opportunity to deliver it is hanging over the professional security community and those in the government responsible for protecting us. The fear comes from a discovery that U.S. intelligence basically ignored A.Q. Khan and Pakistani intelligence's nuclear proliferation activities prior to 9/11."
PublicEducationCenter
"Clearly the most serious scenario is if weapons-grade HEU can be obtained by a terrorist group. Due to the very low neutron emission rate, very low technology can produce a substantial probability of full insertion and high yield detonation. A weapon constructed from 40 kg of 93.5% HEU, with a 10 cm tungsten carbide reflector would produce a full yield of >10 kt. The required assembly time for a 50% chance of complete assembly is some 48 milliseconds, equal to a velocity of only 9 m/sec. This can be achieved by simply dropping the bullet 4.4 meters! Crude gun-type arrangements, along the lines of the IRA's makeshift mortars could easily achieve velocities of 100 m/sec or more." NuclearWeaponArchive.org
"MOSCOW (Reuter) - President Boris Yeltsin's former environmental safety adviser said in remarks published on Monday that some of Russia's portable nuclear bombs might indeed be missing, as asserted by another former Yeltsin aide"
Autentico.org