Posted on 10/26/2001 9:23:25 PM PDT by The Magical Mischief Tour
Friday Oct. 26, 2001; 10:42 p.m. EDT ABC News: Anthrax Additive Tied to Saddam
An substance attached to the anthrax in a letter sent to the offices of Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle indicates that the deadly poison was concocted in Iraqi laboratories, confirming a report by an Iraqi weapons expert cited in a print exclusive by NewsMax.com earlier this week.
"An urgent series of tests conducted on the letter at Ft. Detrick, Md., and elsewhere discovered the anthrax spores were treated with bentonite," ABC News reported late Friday.
"As far as is known, only one country, Iraq, has used bentonite to produce biological weapons," ABC News said.
The unique Iragi biological component helps keep anthrax particles from sticking together, thereby making the substance more easily airborne and all the more deadly. Bentonite is considered by biological weapons experts to be an Iraqi "trademark," ABC News reported.
The discovery of benonite in the Daschle letter anthrax is the first evidentiary link between the wave of anthrax attacks that has hit the U.S. in the last two weeks and Saddam Hussein.
"It means to me that Iraq becomes the prime suspect as the source of anthrax used in these letters," former U.N. weapons inspector Timothy Trevan told ABC News.
Late Monday, the one-time head of Saddam Hussein's nuclear weapons program, Dr. Khidhir Hamza, said that there was no doubt Iraq had produced the anthrax used in the current wave of bioterror attacks on the U.S.
"This is Iraq," Dr.Hamza told CNBC's "Rivera Live." "This is Iraq's work."
"Nobody (else) has the expertise outside the U.S. and outside the major powers who work on germ warfare. Nobody has the expertise and has any motive to attack the U.S. except Saddam to do this. This is Iraq. This is Saddam," Dr. Hamza said.
NewsMax.com was the only print outlet to report Dr. Hamza's coments.
Thanks for picking up on this.
Sort of like a game where everyone gets three guesses.
Mitchell's story is here. If you read it, you'll see that she's just slightly behind the news cycle vis a vis ABC. So, ABC's piece is the latest and most accurate (as of this posting).
One of the recognized uses for Bentonite is as an additive to prevent powdered products (fertilizer, animal feeds, etc.) from caking and sticking together.
As a Chemical Engineer, it seems to me that if I wanted to make a powder that would remain free flowing, it is not exactly rocket science to think of adding in a bit of Bentonite.
Finding Bentonite in the anthrax powder is certainly significant, but it does not point an unwavering finger at anyone.
I look forward to the US finishing off the Taliban and then going after Irag. Go, ABC News, Newsmax.com, and National Enquirer! Should be fun to look at her and ask why she thought it was right wingers again?
Of well, so much for domestic harmony after 30 years of marriage. She does have other redeming qualities even though a messed up political perspective.
Is Bentonite the ONLY ingredient that could be used to this end? Surely there is some reason that Iraq alone (hitherto) has been the sole manufacturer to use this process. Any ideas from your professional experience?
Ah well. And I scurried to help. ;-p
Memo to Saddam :
RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!!!!!!!!!!
Except that Iraq is the only country known to process weapons-grade anthrax spores in this fashion.
The Soviet and American processes were quite different.
If this were true, CNN would have gotten a liter or two of the stuff. They got none.
The article says that Iraq is the only country that uses bentonite. As CurlyDave suggested, bentonite is a rather common ingredient (I am also a Chem Eng). I suspect this a relatively low tech approach used by the Iraqis and the US & Russia may have more effective agents.
In the same time period Iraq will not develop any deterrence against nuclear attack. If the anthrax is supposed to be some kind of "Don't tread on me" threat, it has a very short shelf life and only serves to stimulate the preparation of our defenses. What does Iraq gain from this anthrax attack?
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