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Saddam and Iran Prepare WMD
efreedomnews.com ^ | August 15, 2002 | Jonathan Rhodes

Posted on 08/18/2002 1:17:45 AM PDT by efnwriter

War on Iraq

Saddam and Iran Prepare WMD

efreedomnews.com

by Jonathan Rhodes August 15, 2002

Saddam cannot win a war with the US, if the US has the will to win. However, if he attacks first and achieves military control over much of the middle east, he can reach a position of strength to negotiate from and may not only maintain his power but extend it.

First, the disinformation campaign while Saddam Prepares Preemptive Attacks

Iraq invited chief U.N. arms inspector Hans Blix to visit Baghdad for technical talks on Aug. 1. However, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan told Iraq, by formal letter, that it must accept the U.N. Security Council's terms for the return of weapons inspectors before such talks take place.

Iraq has not yet replied to Annan's letter.

On August 10, 2002, Iraqi Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan told Abu Dhabi Television that Baghdad was willing to discuss the return of inspectors -as long as there were no conditions to the discussions:

"Iraq is ready to discuss the return of the U.N. weapons inspectors, provided that any dialogue with the United Nations takes place with no preconditions."

On August 12 Baghdad said return of UN weapons inspectors was unnecessary:

"To say, as the United States does, that Iraq possesses prohibited weapons is pure invention. The teams of inspectors finished their work," Information Minister Mohammad Said al-Sahhaf told a Qatar-based Al-Jazeera satellite television channel from Baghdad.

"The work of the United Nations according to Chapter C of resolution 687 on the so-called prohibited arms has been accomplished." he said.

The August 10 Ramadan interview was not aired in full until today, August 15, 2002, (although it was widely reported on August 10th). Even the supposedly accurate Associated Press has been confused by this disinformation campaign as they reported Ramadan's August 10 remarks as "...appear(ing) to back down from his strong opposition to the return of inspectors," in an article dated August 15, 2002 titled Iraq Ready for Return of Inspectors .

Are you confused now? Don't be - Saddam is just using disinformation to stall as he prepares to launch an attack into Jordan and Israel on his way to Middle Eastern hegemony.

That story, being virtually ignored by news outlets like the AP, is very clear, and very, very serious.

One article, not picked up by the wire services, was written by Bill Gertz for The Washington Times. - Iraqi Germ Plant Active. Research by efreedomnews has expanded on Mr. Gertz's report.

US and Israeli satellites have picked up large convoys of trucks leaving the Taji Single Cell Protein Plant, 6 miles northwest of Baghdad. The destination: The Zagros Mountains - 12,000 to 15,000 feet high and nearly impassable. The convoys stop at two sites 20 to 30 kilometers inside the Iranian border in Kermanshah Province near the suburbs of Khorram-Abad and the other in the Harour Hills in the Khorram Abad region.

Taji is a main chemical, biological and nuclear weapons manufacturing center.

The plant was converted by the Iraqis into a biological-weapons production facility and subsequently bombed during the 1991 Persian Gulf war. After the war, U.N. weapons inspectors uncovered evidence that Iraq had used the site to fill Scud-missile warheads with deadly VX nerve agent. The Taji plant produced hundreds of gallons of Botulinum toxin during the late 1980s and had a spore drier capable of producing up to a kilogram of weaponized dried spores a day for Botulinum and anthrax.

The Taji plant was the planned location for a centrifuge uranium-enrichment program for nuclear weapons production. The program was believed to have been halted after 1991, but Iraq has since purchased equipment for centrifuge enrichment.

Since 1997 Saddam has fully rebuilt the plant and protected it with Republican Guard tank divisions.

So clearly, convoys of trucks leaving Taji would be transporting WMD weapons or the equipment to make WMD weapons. Saddam would like to keep this state of the art WMD factory intact. The two destination sites in the Zagros are tunnels built in the mid-1970's by the Shah of Iran. After his fall in 1979 when Jimmy Carter abandoned him, a Revolutionary Guard (Pazdaran) force was permanently stationed at the tunnels site. In early 1998 the tunnels were modernized and greatly strengthened against air attacks.

This preservation of WMD capability is so important to Saddam that he has put his son and probable heir Qusay in command of the project. Bagher Zolghadr, commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards on the Iran-Iraq border, heads up the Iranian end of the operation.

DEBKAfile reports: Iran’s ulterior motive in providing safekeeping for Saddam’s WMD resources is simple. According to our intelligence sources, Iran commands nothing nearly as advanced as Iraq in the way of nuclear, biological and chemical weapons-making equipment. Helping Saddam will lend Iran’s experts free access to Iraq’s state of the art equipment and a chance to copy and assimilate technology that cost Iraq billions of dollars to develop.

Other reports indicate that Baghdad is developing rail cars that could be used to develop or transport biological weapons agents. "They're buying dual-use capability," SecDef Rumsfeld said during a visit to a military base in Suffolk, Va. "A biological laboratory can be on wheels in a trailer and make a lot of bad stuff, and it's movable, and it looks like most any other trailer."

The most worrisome aspect of safeguarding the WMD manufacturing equipment movement is that Saddam feels comfortable with his current stocks of WMD materials and deployment.

There are unsubstantiated reports that Saddam has up to 20 "dirty bombs" and 6 to 10 active nuclear weapons that can be launched by missile or jet aircraft.

Saddam continues to prepare for immediate preemptive WMD strikes against US troops already in the Kurdish area of northern Iraq, as well as those located at the Jordanian air bases at Ar Ruwayshid in the east, Wadi el-Murbah to the north and al-Mafraq in the west. The Turkish air base at Incirlik is also high on the Iraqi target list.

On August 8, 2002, Saddam gave a speech to the Iraqi people and said:

“The forces of evil [United States] will carry their coffins on their backs, to die in disgraceful failure, taking their schemes back with them, or to dig their own graves after they bring death to themselves on all Arab or Muslim soil against which they perpetrate aggression, including Iraq, the land of Jihad and the banner.”

“Charge on, charge on, charge on…the beloved chant is raised, as though our men are circumambulating the Qa’ba or returning to the place from which the Prophet Mohammed, the Messenger of Allah, ascended to God on that Blessed Night, after they cleanse the land of Palestine of Zionist desecration.” [Israel]

Of course Israel is a prime target for Saddam. Yesterday, civilian residents of Jerusalem were distributed iodine tablets to be taken in the event of a nuclear attack and 100,000 smallpox vaccinations were initiated, given to "first responders" - military, medical and rescue team personnel.

Companion, synchronous massed Palestinian suicide bombings in Israel, coordinated by Yasser Arafat, and WMD attacks on New York and Washington by pre-positioned sleeper terrorist cells are integral to Saddam's plan.

After the initial WMD attacks, Saddam's plan is to launch an all out invasion of Jordan. He has met with Syrian President Assad and attempted to persuade him to join the pan-Arabic war and attack Israel from the Golan Heights.

To elucidate the reality of this Iraqi scenario, 4000 US troops arrived at Jordan’s Aqaba port on the Red Sea Monday, August 12 with loads of Bradley fighting vehicles and helicopters on ships hastily chartered by the US Navy. [DOD Briefing, Straitstimes, Navy Leases Transports]

SecDef Rumsfeld claimed this was for a long scheduled "exercise" with Jordan's armed forces.

Jordan's closure of the local branch of Al-Jazeera television last week will result in minimal Arab news coverage of these troop movements.

Most likely, the real reason for the deployment is to protect Jordan’s main highways between the port of Aqaba, Amman and the northern air bases as well as highways directly into Israel to the west; to protect against the Iraqi invasion of Jordan, and Israel.

This may all be saber rattling by Saddam, but the escalating troop and equipment movement on both sides, the Israeli precautions and the activity around Taji portends Saddam may not be willing to wait for the US to rain bombs on him and systematically take Iraq apart before he responds. His first attack has to be lethal - he knows he will not get a second chance.


TOPICS: Breaking News; Foreign Affairs; Front Page News; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: iraq; war; wmd
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1 posted on 08/18/2002 1:17:45 AM PDT by efnwriter
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To: efnwriter
Scary stuff!
2 posted on 08/18/2002 1:26:44 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
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To: efnwriter
Nice site! Bookmarked for later reading and reference.
3 posted on 08/18/2002 1:28:43 AM PDT by Cold Heat
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To: efnwriter

Isn't the northest area where the Al-Queda are relocating?

4 posted on 08/18/2002 1:30:12 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
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And another map:


5 posted on 08/18/2002 1:37:01 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach
And in Turkey:


6 posted on 08/18/2002 1:39:16 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach
Yes, al-Qaida are known to have crossed the northwestern Afghan border into northeastern Iran. The caves mentioned in the article and the Zagros mountains are in northwestern Iran, just over the border from Iraq.
Jonathan
7 posted on 08/18/2002 1:42:07 AM PDT by efnwriter
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To: efnwriter
I wonder what is really going on here. We fiddle around while our recognized enemy (Iraq) ramps up WMD. Iraq's historical enemy Iran gears up WMD. Russia signs a trade pact with Iraq.

This sounds like the late 1930's all over again. Will Iraq attack Iran, taking the Western Part while Russia Takes the East? This would give Russia an oil pipeline path from the Caspian Sea to the Persian Gulf or the Arabian Sea.

8 posted on 08/18/2002 1:45:52 AM PDT by Mike Darancette
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To: efnwriter
The caves are in Iran?

I would bet that would tie Iraq to being a the major supporter of the Al Queda!

All Bush has to do is deliver some evidence that they are guarding the Weapons of Iraq and much of the current critism would lessen!
9 posted on 08/18/2002 1:53:14 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
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To: efnwriter
Does anyone know how much oil Iran has? Iraq has the second largest supply next to Saudi Arabia. But I would like to know how oil-rich Iran is.
10 posted on 08/18/2002 2:15:29 AM PDT by DBtoo
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach
Yes Ernest, the caves are in Iran. This is an excerpt from the article.

US and Israeli satellites have picked up large convoys of trucks leaving the Taji Single Cell Protein Plant, 6 miles northwest of Baghdad. The destination: The Zagros Mountains - 12,000 to 15,000 feet high and nearly impassable. The convoys stop at two sites 20 to 30 kilometers inside the Iranian border in Kermanshah Province near the suburbs of Khorram-Abad and the other in the Harour Hills in the Khorram Abad region.... So clearly, convoys of trucks leaving Taji would be transporting WMD weapons or the equipment to make WMD weapons. Saddam would like to keep this state of the art WMD factory intact. The two destination sites in the Zagros are tunnels built in the mid-1970's by the Shah of Iran. After his fall in 1979 when Jimmy Carter abandoned him, a Revolutionary Guard (Pazdaran) force was permanently stationed at the tunnels site. In early 1998 the tunnels were modernized and greatly strengthened against air attacks. DEBKAfile reports: Iran’s ulterior motive in providing safekeeping for Saddam’s WMD resources is simple. According to our intelligence sources, Iran commands nothing nearly as advanced as Iraq in the way of nuclear, biological and chemical weapons-making equipment. Helping Saddam will lend Iran’s experts free access to Iraq’s state of the art equipment and a chance to copy and assimilate technology that cost Iraq billions of dollars to develop.

Jonathan

11 posted on 08/18/2002 2:19:51 AM PDT by efnwriter
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To: DBtoo
At the end of 2001, Iran had 89.7 thousand million barrels reserve (in the ground) and Iraq had 112.5.

link: http://www.bp.com/downloads/1090/oil.pdf

home link: http://www.bp.com/centres/energy2002/oil/reserves.asp#

Jonathan
12 posted on 08/18/2002 2:32:03 AM PDT by efnwriter
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To: efnwriter
This article is way out in left field, which isn't surprising considering the author quotes Debka as a source. Iraq is not going to invade Jordan and Israel because they can't move mechanized infantry across the open desert with the US and Israeli air forces attacking them from the air. Their tanks would be turned into smoking wrecks just as in the first Gulf War. They might be able to pull off some kind of end run around US forces into Kuwait and harass the Kuwaitees for a few days until we kick them out again with air power. But this idea of Iraq conquering the Middle East is rediculous.
13 posted on 08/18/2002 3:02:57 AM PDT by defenderSD
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To: efnwriter
No, the U.S. shouldn't go after Sadam and his, they should just let Iraq go and wipe Israel off the map and then bully the rest of the mid-east and world. STUPID LIBERALS.
14 posted on 08/18/2002 3:08:33 AM PDT by Joe Boucher
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To: defenderSD
. Iraq is not going to invade Jordan and Israel because they can't move mechanized infantry across the open desert with the US and Israeli air forces attacking them from the air.

You miss the point, Iraq and Iran are preparing to WMD American troops and Israel. After a few nukes on our troops there will not be the force necessary to stop troop movements. The Egyptians said as much over a year ago in the Newspapers. Iraq cannot stop us with conventional troops, even they know that. That is why a first-strike scenario by WMD is becoming more likely. These movements by the Iraqi's with help from the Iranians confirm that.

15 posted on 08/18/2002 3:34:26 AM PDT by American in Israel
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To: efnwriter
Would that qualify them as the country with the world's third largest oil reserves? I suspect it is. I'll check out the links. Thanks!
16 posted on 08/18/2002 3:44:42 AM PDT by DBtoo
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To: American in Israel
After a few nukes on our troops

On that day, their nations would cease to exist.
Even the CommiecRATs would stop being liberals for a day or two.

Peace is possible in the Middle East.


17 posted on 08/18/2002 5:52:38 AM PDT by ASA Vet
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To: defenderSD
Iraq is not going to invade Jordan and Israel because they can't move mechanized infantry across the open desert with the US and Israeli air forces attacking them from the air. Their tanks would be turned into smoking wrecks just as in the first Gulf War.

Tanks and other mechanized infantry are worthless in the treeless/coverless Middle East these days. They will be taken out BRUTALLY by an array of weaponry from the air. Smarter bombs and up to and including tactical neutron bombs.

The 1973 tank battle between Israel-Egypt is yesterday's news.

18 posted on 08/18/2002 5:58:53 AM PDT by dennisw
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To: efnwriter
Saddam cannot win a war with the US, if the US has the will to win. However, if he attacks first and achieves military control over much of the middle east, he can reach a position of strength to negotiate from and may not only maintain his power but extend it.

ROTFLMAO!!

Attacks first? Whom? How? and most impotantly why? Saddam has been playing the victim game since Desert Storm. If he attacks anyone he loses the only safeguard he has left, being the victim. Use WMD? What do you think Israel is going to respond with if WMD is used on them. This whole column is ludicrous.

19 posted on 08/18/2002 6:08:27 AM PDT by hflynn
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To: efnwriter
This article is preposterous. Sadaam will never be in a position of power in which the U.S. would have to "negotiate" peace. The U.S. already has enough military resources in the region to lay waste to any offensive movement that Sadaam might have in mind. And that does not even take into consideration the massive military might of Israel that would likely be drawn into the action as well as the not insignificant military muscle of Turkey. There is simply no chance in hell that Sadaam can "take over" the Middle East and force us to negotiate with him. And if Sadaam does decide to use WMD, it will be the last thing he ever does along with a few million of his people.
20 posted on 08/18/2002 6:08:58 AM PDT by SamAdams76
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