Iraq Scud boss poisoned

The Sun ^ | March 1, 2003 | GEORGE PASCOE-WATSON

[MadIvan]

SADDAM Hussein’s top missile expert has been murdered to stop him blabbing to the UN.

General Muhammad Sa’id al Darraj died on Thursday after Saddam’s men poisoned his drink.

Relatives say he was ordered to hide details of Iraqi Scuds from the UN — but devious Saddam did not trust him.

The revelation came as President Bush warned war was imminent.

He said Saddam would be forced to give up his weapons — whatever the UN decided. He added: “If he had any intention of disarming, he would have disarmed. We will disarm him now.”

Bush called war the “last option” but said Americans fully understood an attack may be launched soon.

He added: “I’ve thought long and hard about the consequences and the price that could be paid.”

His comments came as UN chief weapons inspector Hans Blix said Iraq was expected to start destroying its outlawed Al Samoud 2 missiles on Saturday.

The rockets can carry chemical and biological warheads and travel more than 90 miles — the maximum range laid down by the UN.

General al-Darraj was murdered hours before Saddam agreed to the destruction. The engineer had been called to a meeting at one of Saddam’s palaces for talks about how to mislead UN scientists over Iraq’s Scud programme.

Moments before he died, he managed to tell his family Saddam’s officials had spiked his drink with poison.

British intelligence chiefs said the murder was another example of Saddam’s ruthlessness.

They said it underlined his total disregard for human rights.

Saddam had his own son-in-law assassinated when he exposed the tyrant’s weapons of mass destruction.

[george wythe]

If the inspectors find no weapons:

See, there is no reason to go to war, there are no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq

If the inspectors find weapons:

See, inspections are working, there is no reason to go to war.

Complete circular logic à la française

[Mad_Tom_Rackham]

Blix's next report to the UN: "Everyone we interviewed has subsequently and mysteriously died. But we have found no more banned weapons, so Iraq is in compliance with UN directives. There is no need for war."

[I Am Not A Mod]

Free Republic Highlights, 2/28/03

[Semper911]

Yes, the newspaper is a tabloid and has naked girls on Page 3, but...

LOL! Sorry, that just struck me as hilarious.

Thanks for posting this article. I expect the American media will latch onto it, unless of course they have some other more exciting war news to report. (...if you know what I mean.)

[I still care]

Did anyone else think of Rommel when they read this?

[hippy hate me]

Blix's next report to the UN: "Everyone we interviewed has subsequently and mysteriously died. But we have found no more banned weapons, so Iraq is in compliance with UN directives. There is no need for war....oh, wait a minute...the war is over. Nevermind."

[JOE6PAK]

PRETZEL LOGIC foursquare!

[SierraWasp]

Hay Ivan!!!

That's one bichin phlag!!! (wide grin)

[nomorecameljocks]

Wow, Iraq is almost as deadly as Arkansas. Well, one down, thousands to go.

[Michael Sidiropoulos]

Don't think that the French and the Germans will change their policy because of this.

They sleep with the fishes......(The Godfather).

[Bob]

I'm sure Hans (innocent is) Blix will claim...

If you would allow me a minor correction to your statement.

I think that should be:
I'm sure Hans (innocent ignorance is) Blix will claim...

[hippy hate me]

The French are spineless because they know they are no match against Saddam's German technology.

[MJY1288]

LOL, I know, I put innocent this time because he never wants to offend anyone.<pTo me... Ignorance is someone who doesn't know what's going on. I think Hans Blix knows exactly what he is doing and he wants to be innocent when the war starts :-)

[eeriegeno]

UN chief weapons inspector Hans Blix said Iraq was expected to start destroying its outlawed Al Samoud 2 missiles on Saturday.

This weekend is going to be interesting......

[Conservababe]

The Enquirer is not the one your daddy knew. They have broken many stories lately.

[MadIvan]

Saddam poisons the General, then props him up in a chair just before Blix shows up.

About as believable as this:

Regards, Ivan

[SwinneySwitch]

Hitler gave Rommel the choice of suicide, to be reported as death from his wounds, or execution as a traitor, which would have placed his family in danger.

[hippy hate me]

Wow, Iraq is almost as deadly as Arkansas. I'll have to take your word for it. Never been to Arkansas...

[Semper911]

No disagreement there. Sometimes I think they do more fact checking than FoxNews.

And they are no longer reporting on "Alien Babies" or, as Ivan said, "WWII bombers on the Moon." I still scrutinize anything reported in the tabs, and any story is a little hard to take seriously from a paper that also offers naked women on page 3.

[Semper911]

...from a paper that also offers naked women on page 3.

Not that there is anything wrong with that...