Iraqi drone 'could drop chemicals on troops' (See Para #2 of story -- MUST READ)

London Times ^ | 8 March 2003 | James Bone

[PhiKapMom]

March 08, 2003

Iraqi drone 'could drop chemicals on troops'
From James Bone in New York

A REPORT declassified by the United Nations yesterday contained a hidden bombshell with the revelation that inspectors have recently discovered an undeclared Iraqi drone with a wingspan of 7.45m, suggesting an illegal range that could threaten Iraq’s neighbours with chemical and biological weapons.

US officials were outraged that Hans Blix, the chief UN weapons inspector, did not inform the Security Council about the drone, or remotely piloted vehicle, in his oral presentation to Foreign Ministers and tried to bury it in a 173-page single-spaced report distributed later in the day. The omission raised serious questions about Dr Blix’s objectivity.

“Recent inspections have also revealed the existence of a drone with a wingspan of 7.45m that has not been declared by Iraq,” the report said. “Officials at the inspection site stated that the drone had been test-flown. Further investigation is required to establish the actual specifications and capabilities of these RPV drones . . . (they) are restricted by the same UN rules as missiles, which limit their range to 150km (92.6 miles).

Colin Powell, the US Secretary of State, told the Security Council in February that Washington had evidence that Iraq had test-flown a drone in a race-track pattern for 500km non-stop.

In another section of the declassified report, the inspectors give warning that Iraq still has spraying devices and drop tanks that could be used in dispersing chemical and biological agents from aircraft. “A large number of drop tanks of various types, both imported and locally manufactured, are available and could be modified,” it says.

The paper, obtained by The Times, details the possible chemical and biological arsenal that British and US Forces could face in an invasion of Iraq. The paper suggests that Iraq has huge stockpiles of anthrax, may be developing long-range missiles and could possess chemical and biological R400 aerial bombs and Scud missiles, and even smallpox.

Jack Straw, the Foreign Secretary, told his fellow Security Council Foreign Ministers that the document was a“chilling read”.

General Powell resorted to reading passages from the paper out loud in the Council chamber. He pointed out that it chronicled nearly 30 times when Iraq had failed to provide credible evidence to substantiate its claims, and 17 instances when inspectors uncovered evidence that contradicted those claims. But his draft copy, dating from a meeting of the inspectors’ advisory board last week, did not contain the crucial passage about the new drone.

The decision by Dr Blix to declassify the internal report marks the first time the UN has made public its suspicions about Iraq’s banned weapons programmes, rather than what it has been able to actually confirm. “Unmovic has credible information that the total quantity of biological warfare agent in bombs, warheads and in bulk at the time of the Gulf War was 7,000 litres more than declared by Iraq. This additional agent was most likely all anthrax,” it says.

The report says there is “credible information” indicating that 21,000 litres of biological warfare agent, including some 10,000 litres of anthrax, was stored in bulk at locations around the country during the war and was never destroyed.

The paper, a collection of 29 “clusters” of questions for Iraq, offers some reassurance about Iraq’s missing botulinum toxin, which Unmovic believed is “unlikely to retain much, if any, of its potency” if it has been stockpiled since 1991.

[deport]

they'll use them on us here in the US.

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sounds like a lot of trouble to import, keep hidden, reassemble and then use on the populace when all you need is a crop duster or some other small plane which you can attach a few spray nozzles and a holding tank....

[PhiKapMom]

Actually he does. Doesn't want to give the entire report and make it public. Disgusting!

[gov_bean_ counter]

The fact we knew they had drones and Blix knew but did not tell us they had found them is the story.

I will go one step further. I would lay odds that this Blix drone find was a gift from US intel. This certainly isn't something the Iraqis would give up on their own.

[TheSpottedOwl]

I think the guy is a Nazi...but I could be wrong. Why oh why oh why did we bother going to the UN in the first place?

[marajade]

The History Channel shows that have been on tonight have stated that Saddam really hates Israel and that they would be the likely target...

[marajade]

Actually we gave them intel about smaller drones publicly by Powell and Blix basically accused Powell of lying...

[RoseofTexas]

I am sooooo angry I could spit nails!! WHY AREN'T ALL THE MEDIA OUTLETS reporting this!!! That BASTARD COWARD WHORE BLIX outta be booted out!! W better milk this baby to it's fullest!! AND now SadDEMON is demanding the Jerks over at the UN to drop the embargo! This evil bastard is playing those fools like puppets!! PLEASE TELL ME that W is going to fire out of both barrels over this!!!!!!!! PLEASEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!

[Jorge]

Blix lied to the Security Council on Friday. This information was not furnished to Powell or Straw until later which is now being reported on NBC, MSNBC, and Fox.

Blix has played right into Saddam's hands, and has divided the UN with this kind of nonsense.

However he is also unwittingly making a fool out of Saddam who thinks that a UN vote against the US and UK will actually protect him from attack.
As a result, when Bush and Blair give the go ahead, Saddam will not know what hit him.

[deport]

That's not what was left out of the report was it? Wasn't it that the inspectors had found one and not included it in the report?

A REPORT declassified by the United Nations yesterday contained a hidden bombshell with the revelation that inspectors have recently discovered an undeclared Iraqi drone with a wingspan of 7.45m, suggesting an illegal range that could threaten Iraq’s neighbours with chemical and biological weapons.

Not what we already knew but what Blix and the inspectors just found out but omitted... that's what the report didn't include...

[maestro]

Iraqi drone 'could drop chemicals on troops'
(From James Bone in New York)

.......or,.....on airfields,.....ships,.....ports,......ships at sea,......Kurds, Turks, Iranians,....ports too.

[TEXOKIE]

Amen to your first post, PhiKapMom!

[Samwise]

To shut the stinking liberals up, but it just make them louder.

[wendellscout]

This burns me! I am new to this forum, and am developing my conservative views currently. I seem to agree with everyone on this site more and more. We need to get in there! I think Howie Carr said on Friday "Beware the ides of March"

[deport]

Saddam really hates Israel and that they would be the likely target...

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Yep and so they were last time in 1991 with the scuds.

[PhiKapMom]

The same intelligence people that Blix and his sidekick dissed in their latest reports to the United Nations.

The report Blix gave on Friday basically said the US Intellilgence was worthless.

And he knew all along the drones had been found. I thought he was incompetent before but now I think he is Anti-American and in the hip pocket of Saddam and Chirac! Three peas in a pod!

[slimer]

The implications of this along with the persistence of France to lead the other Euroweanies in preventing the U.N. from athorizing force against Iraq puts American and British soldiers more at risk for greater loss of life when the war does begin.

These traitors are not our allies and under the Bush Doctrine, "you're either with us or you are with the enemy" clearly exposes whose side they are on.

I am so outraged that I think we should strike France along with Iraq. When we go into Baghdad, we are going to uncover evidence that is going to prove beyond any doubt that these so called European allies are traitors and have been stabbing us in the back for political and financial gain.

Damn the torpedoes! Let's Roll!

[deport]

Yes the final version but not the draft version to which Powell was given and working from... and not mentioned in his oral presentations.....

[PhiKapMom]

If you read the article and according to the reporter from the London Times that was interviewed, the drone information was buried inside the final report. The fact the report went from 167 to 173 made some people start looking for what was added and that's when they found the information on the drones.

Bottom line: Blix did not hand six pages over of new information -- instead he buried that information that led to having 173 pages.