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by Imad Khadduri, Former Iraqi Nuclear Scientist
Friday, May. 02, 2003 at 2:03 AM
"I was always telling the truth. Iraq does not have chemical and biological weapons of mass destruction. Time will bear me out, " says Amer Al Saadi......
(YellowTimes.org) -- In late August 2002, I listened with trepidation to President Bush's burgeoning false allegations about Iraq's nuclear military capability. Even then, one could discern that the sustained use of misinformation to support the invasion of Iraq showed that the President's claims were not based on any facts. I, having worked with Iraq's nuclear program for thirty years, reacted with a series of articles expounding on the fact that Iraq had ceased its nuclear weapons program at the start of the 1991 war. I refuted the claims and evidence most famously, or infamously, branded by Secretary of State Colin Powell to the Security Council in February 2003 in which Powell argued that Iraq had rejuvenated its nuclear weapons program after the Gulf War.
With heightened apprehension, I listened to Vice President Dick Cheney's claim on MSNBC that the U.S. does not accept the results of the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) extensive inspections nor its failure to find any evidence of a rejuvenated Iraqi nuclear weapons program. The IAEA explicitly exposed the fact that a uranium procurement document provided by British and American intelligence as a piece of evidence proving Iraq's nuclear weapon capability was, in fact, a planted forgery. Cheney provocatively claimed, on the day before Bush's 48 hours ultimatum to invade Iraq, that U.S. intelligence had proof otherwise. My last retort to that incredible plain lie was that some bogus evidence might be planted once U.S. forces were on the ground in Iraq.
Bombing to waste, yet again, the main Nuclear Research Center at Tuwaitha, and foolishly allowing American soldiers to break IAEA protective seals and opening Tuwaitha's radioactive burial mound for looters who then contaminated themselves and their families, the Americans have yet to produce their "evidence" of a nuclear weapons program in Iraq. Why is Cheney now silent about Iraq's nuclear weapons program? With U.S. troops in control of Iraq, this information cannot be a "national security" issue anymore.
In addition to the non-existent nuclear weapons program, two developments in the past two months have convinced me that, since 1991-1992, Iraq did not rejuvenate its chemical or biological weapons programs, either.
The first development was a Newsweek story on March 03, 2003 unveiling, after eight years of suppression, the transcript of Hussain Kamel's debriefing by officials from the IAEA and the U.N. inspection team known as UNSCOM; this debriefing took place after Kamel defected to Jordan in 1995. In it, he affirmed that Iraq had indeed destroyed its entire stockpile of chemical and biological weapons and banned missiles after the Gulf War. All that remained were "hidden blueprints, computer disks, microfiches." The weapons were destroyed secretly, in order to hide their existence from inspectors, in the hopes of someday resuming production after inspections had finished. According to John Barry, who broke the story, the CIA and MI6 were told the same account and "a military aide who defected with Kamel ... backed Kamel's assertions about the destruction of WMD stocks." But these statements were "hushed up by the U.N. inspectors" in order to "bluff Saddam into disclosing still more."
On February 26, 2003, a complete copy of Hussain Kamel's transcript -- an internal UNSCOM/IAEA document stamped "sensitive" -- was obtained by Glen Rangwala, the Cambridge University analyst who in early February revealed that Tony Blair's "intelligence dossier" was plagiarized from a student thesis. This transcript can be seen at http://www.fair.org/press-releases/kamel.pdf.
On page 7 of the transcript, an UNSCOM Russian expert, with the name of Smidovich, asked the direct question: "Were weapons and agents destroyed?"
"Nothing remained," was Kamel's reply.
Smidovich insisted: "Was it before or after inspections started?"
Hussain Kamel replied: "After visits of inspection teams…"
Smidovich insisted: "We could not find any traces of destruction."
Hussain Kamel reiterated: "Yes, it was done before you came in. The place they buried them was found by you."
Smidovich recollected: "Is this the place north of Baghdad where they were buried?"
Hussain Kamel replied: "It was in the month you came in. Destruction of warheads started but I could not remember the details."
Tellingly, Iraq, in January 2003, collected and provided access to UNSCOM to more than twenty personnel who actually participated in the events of the above revelation. UNSCOM then carried out further extensive excavations at that site.
Hussain Kamel also had a few remarks on the bottom of page 5 on the habitual liar, Khidhir Hamza, who kept claiming throughout the nineties, on CNN and FOX as well as to Congressional Committees, that Iraq was on the verge of producing nuclear bombs. His accusations continued up until March 2003 when he suddenly quieted down and headed for Kuwait to receive his new post in the new "Iraqi" government.
The revelation of Hussain Kamel's detailed confession, by itself, did not induce me to endorse his assertion bluntly or publicly, though it was illuminating and historically authentic. Previously we had heard of his confession, but not of its contents.
It was the second event, which took place two weeks ago, which convinced me of the futility of finding weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.
Amer Al Saadi, the chemical engineer and a senior scientific consultant to the Iraqi government, was the first prominent personality to surrender to the American forces after his German wife interceded with a German TV station to arrange for his surrender. For the past decade, he had been a polished, dignified and assured spokesman. He participated in the biological weapons program since its start in the early eighties. I knew him personally and had great admiration for his scientific integrity. In a ten-minute interview with German TV, Al Saadi asserted that: "I was always telling the truth. Iraq does not have chemical and biological weapons of mass destruction. I have nothing to hide. Time will bear me out."
Indeed, time is bearing him out to the chagrin of Bush and Blair. The American and British hopes of finding any WMDs in Iraq, not planted by them, are vanishing mirages.
Bush, Blair and their senior officials lied to their people, knowingly, and waged a criminal invasion in lieu of this reason. Is this the democracy model for a "liberated" Iraq?
[Imad Khadduri has a MSc in Physics from the University of Michigan (United States) and a PhD in Nuclear Reactor Technology from the University of Birmingham (United Kingdom). Khadduri worked with the Iraqi Atomic Energy Commission from 1968 until 1998. He was able to leave Iraq in late 1998 with his family. He now teaches and works as a network administrator in Toronto, Canada. He has been interviewed by the United Nations, the International Atomic Energy Agency, FOX, the Toronto Star, Reuters, and various other news agencies in regards to his knowledge of the Iraqi nuclear program. This article was originally printed in YellowTimes.org.]
Imad Khadduri encourages your comments: imad.khadduri@rogers.com
www.YellowTimes.org
by Josef
Friday, May. 02, 2003 at 7:05 AM
Well, if ending the brutal sadistic reppression of 22 million people is a crime then so be it. Turn a blind eye to what doesn't suit your propangda. Nobody will pay any attention to you people unless you stop ignoring the fact the US did a good thing in both Afghanistan and Iraq.
by daveman
Friday, May. 02, 2003 at 7:18 AM
...shows that Iraq's WMD programs were stricly comparted.
So how would a scientist involved in any one of the three programs know about the other two?
Sorry. I don't buy it.
by systemfailure
Friday, May. 02, 2003 at 10:11 AM
 may1st.jpg9xgan8.jpg, image/jpeg, 675x449
by daveman
Friday, May. 02, 2003 at 10:17 AM
Way to soak up the bandwidth with graphics files that have absolutley no bearing on the thread topic!
by Diogenes
Friday, May. 02, 2003 at 1:14 PM
“Well, if ending the brutal sadistic repression of 22 million people is a crime then so be it. Turn a blind eye to what doesn't suit your propangda. Nobody will pay any attention to you people unless you stop ignoring the fact the US did a good thing in both Afghanistan and Iraq.”
Josef I think you spend too much time listening to Rush and watching Faux News.
Factually the mess in Afghanistan is not resolved. Hamid Karzai, the installed U.S. Puppet President of Afghanistan, is President of Kabul. Beyond Kabul Afghanistan is quagmire of Opium Warlords and bandits. Draconian and repressive Religous Laws are again being imposed on Afghani Women. And Draconian Religous Punishments meted out to offenders of the local bullies. U.S. Forces that venture out in anything less than Armored Convoys are the central participants in a “Shooting Gallery”. I saw a report the other day the 7 more Special Forces had been killed. Opium Production, which had almost been eradicated under the Taliban, has returned to full production and then some. (Not that I shall shed any tears for the Taliban) It has gone from almost nothing to hundreds of tons. However, Unocal did get it’s Pipeline, which of course is heavily guarded. Unexploded Cluster Munitions are still taking a toll among curious Afghani Children, and the U.S. has done little to help, as was promised, those who were caught in the cross fire. A good thing? Hardly. And how much did Duhbya put in his budget for, we will not forget this time, Afghanistan? Zero, none, nada, none-whatsoever, Zip, zilch, not any, not one penny, nothing.
And the Iraqi’s:
Let’s see: We went in there without provocation or threat to America to remove the WMDs® that Saddam did not have. Oh no, it was to liberate the Iraqi People©(2001 White house Spin Machine). Of course the Iraqi People have met their glorious liberators in spontaneous demonstrations of their affection - it got so out of hand at one of these love fests that U.S. Forces opened fire killing 13, and wounding at least 75. Cluster Munitions are still taking a toll among curious hungry Iraqi Children to whom the bomblets look very similar to emergency ration packets. Sick. Thousands of years of history in Iraqi museums have been looted or destroyed with at first no action, and now little, taken by Duhbya or his minions. Reporters independent of the “in-bedded” Reporters became targets for U.S. “Precision Weapons” i.e., the Al-Jazeera Office after they had given their exact coordinates and received assurances from U.S. Forces.
War and Conquest are not American values. They are not “Family Values”.
The prime beneficiaries of the Iraqi Invasion are U.S. Corporations in the Bush Camp. As usual the U.S. Taxpayer will cover all the expenses of the conquest and the Oil Companies, and others, will feed heavily at the trough of human misery. But we got the Oil right? Think they’re gonna give it to you for free? No, you’ll pay again. Next time you look at a little child - imagine she just picked up a cluster Bomb and it exploded in her curious little face.
Your kind make me want to puke. You can justify in the little twisted passageways of your mind any horror as long as someone waves a Flag in your face.
I am disgusted beyond words.
You are either:
Willingly ignorant - as all that I mentioned has received heavy reporting on the Net.
OR
You are just another paid disinfo agent.
Speaking of Paid Disinfo Agents:
As for davemorons little dart about compartmentalization or Iraqi Programs.
A. So, where are the WMDs®?
B. You make an unsubstantiated assertion about a program you never worked in - did you?
by daveman
Friday, May. 02, 2003 at 1:20 PM
...Downonhisknees; us generator mechanics don't know nuthin' 'bout no WMD.
You make unsubstantiated assertions all the time. Why does it annoy you when someone else does?
"Free speech for me but not for thee", huh?
Good old Indymedia double standards!
by Scottie
Friday, May. 02, 2003 at 1:28 PM
Suck my cock, you head queen.
by Diogenes
Friday, May. 02, 2003 at 1:39 PM
...protesteth too much. He's got his knickers all in a bunch because he got caught with them down about his knees.
by daveman
Friday, May. 02, 2003 at 1:50 PM
...are fine. It's my panties that are in a bunch.
by daveman
Friday, May. 02, 2003 at 1:55 PM
...are right where they're supposed to be.
But you don't see it that way; you see any response...of any sort...to your inanities as an admission of your superiority.
Forgive me if I don't buy into your delusion.
by daveman's she-male wife
Friday, May. 02, 2003 at 1:58 PM
Dearest Dave, would you like me to start ironing your panties?
by daveman
Friday, May. 02, 2003 at 2:08 PM
...middle school out already?
Skipped detention again, didn't you?
by daveman's she/male wife
Friday, May. 02, 2003 at 2:13 PM
Your lack of penis size and wit are your only two negatives.
by STOP THE SLAUGHTER
Friday, May. 02, 2003 at 11:57 PM
........and once again daveman reacts with nothing but 2nd grade profanity & boring ignorance
by STOP THE SLAUGHTER
Saturday, May. 03, 2003 at 12:18 AM
It is too obvious, and is proven once again in historical fact, that the only reason Bush used the weapons of mass destruction excuse (the same WOMD that Israel and the U.S. own) is because Rumfeld sold them to him when Suddam and he were buddy-buddy a decade ago........(AFTER Suddam killed the kurds.....which is another main excuse used.)
Bush's war has been BASED on nothing but speculation......all in the name of greed.
Men (including our soldiers), women and children have died due to this speculation.
And Bush's Carlyle Group buddy Bin Laden, who alledgedly bombed the Twin Towers, runs free. While the ignorant Americans continue to believe it was Bush Senior's enemy Saddam caused 9-11. Impeach Bush, along with his supportive dirty, greedy, fellons.
by STOP THE SLAUGHTER
Saturday, May. 03, 2003 at 12:22 AM
daveman.....i mean lambchop....I mean traitor......
I see now you are reverting to kindergarten arguements now....... go change your diaper....
by daveman
Saturday, May. 03, 2003 at 2:16 PM
I don't use "kindergarten arguements [sic]".
You obviously have me confused with the Indymedia Faker.
Speaking of Yawns...
In your "EMBARRASSED..." post, are merely rehashing the old Leftie party line and are offering nothing new.
Booooring.
by daveman's she-male wife
Saturday, May. 03, 2003 at 3:19 PM
I ironed your panties today!
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