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| Iraq-Jordan |
| Iraqi Nuclear Gear Found in Europe |
| 2004-04-15 |
| One has to wonder, how and why this is happening Large amounts of nuclear-related equipment, some of it contaminated, and a small number of missile engines have been smuggled out of Iraq for recycling in European scrap yards, according to the head of the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog and other U.N. diplomats. Mohammed ElBaradei, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, warned the U.N. Security Council in a letter that U.N. satellite photos have detected "the extensive removal of equipment and, in some instances, removal of entire buildings" from sites that had been subject to U.N. monitoring before the U.S.-led war against Iraq. ElBaradei said an IAEA investigation "indicates that large quantities of scrap, some of it contaminated, have been transferred out of Iraq, from sites monitored by the IAEA." He said that he has informed the United States about the discovery and is awaiting "clarification." After the 1991 Persian Gulf War, U.N. inspectors discovered, inventoried and destroyed most of the equipment used in Iraq’s nuclear weapons program. But they left large amounts of nuclear equipment and facilities in Iraq intact and "under seal," including debris from the Osirak reactor that was bombed by Israel in 1981. That debris and the buildings are radioactively contaminated. The U.N. nuclear agency has found no evidence yet that the exported materials are being sold to arms dealers or to countries suspected of developing nuclear weapons. But ElBaradei voiced concern that the loss of the materials could pose a proliferation threat and could complicate efforts to reach a conclusive assessment of the history of Iraq’s nuclear program. "It is not clear whether the removal of these items has been the result of looting activities in the aftermath of the recent war in Iraq, or as part of systematic efforts" to clean up contaminated nuclear sites in Iraq, ElBaradei wrote. "In any event these activities may have a significant impact on the agency’s continuity of knowledge of Iraq’s remaining nuclear-related capabilities and raise concern with regards to the proliferation risk associated with dual use material and equipment disappearing to unknown destinations." Richard Grenell, a spokesman for the U.S. mission to the United Nations, said, "We have seen the reports and are obviously concerned, and as we told the IAEA we are looking into the matter." ElBaradei’s letter is dated April 11 and was circulated privately this week among members of the Security Council. Evidence of the illicit import of nuclear-related material surfaced in January after a small quantity of "yellowcake" uranium oxide was discovered in a shipment of scrap metal at Rotterdam’s harbor. The company that purchased the shipment, Jewometaal, detected radioactive material in the container and informed the Dutch government, according to the Associated Press. A spokesman for the company told the news agency that a Jordanian scrap dealer who sent the shipment believed the yellowcake came from Iraq. ElBaradei did not identify the European countries where the materials were discovered. But U.N. and European officials confirmed that IAEA inspectors traveled to Jewometaal’s scrap yard to run tests on the yellowcake. The search turned up missile engines and vessels used in fermentation processes that were subject to U.N. monitoring. The U.N. Monitoring Verification and Inspection Commission informed the council about the finds in a letter, according to diplomats. The IAEA, meanwhile, ordered up satellite images to assess conditions at Iraq’s former nuclear weapons sites. A senior U.N. official said they discovered that two buildings at one former site had vanished and that several scrap piles contained weapons-related materials were also missing. "In Europe, stainless steel goes for $1,500 a ton," the official said. "And that is worth transporting for the purpose of recycling." |
| Posted by:Sherry |
| #16 When Israel bombed the Osirak, it was still under construction..i don't even think they got any superstructure, just the foundation. Certainly there wouldn't have been any radioactives anywhere near. Possible BS? dave |
| Posted by: dave fitz 2004-04-17 12:11:35 PM |
| #15 Anybody who says that Iraq NEVER had WMDs has lost touch with reality. Have we forgottten, or did you never know about the thousands of dead Iraqis killed by Suddam Hussein with chemical weapons during the 80s and 90s? he used the things against his own damn people! There are pictures of this, this is recorded fact! And now because we don't find any that haven't been used yet, people actually defend this psycho?! How long did he have to hide this stuff because some countries were too pussy to go in and do anything about it?! It's like the friggin police calling a crack-house 2 months before a raid letting them know they want to check things out! Of course it's no going to be there! |
| Posted by: Brian the Great 2004-04-16 4:53:30 PM |
| #14 Like the enemy body count that was, ultimately used agaist us, perhaps the administration has learned not to say anything that can be challenged or misinterpreted. |
| Posted by: W. E. Wallis 2004-04-16 9:31:23 AM |
| #13 "Jewometaal," yuk yuk yuk. Sorry, as convincing as this evidence is, i can't believe it -- why hasn't our government come out about it? aren't they all knowing and all powerful? they knew he had WMD's beforehand, anyway. why even bother with all this post-war nonsense? we all knew that john kerry and the rest of the DNC hid the WMD's to make bush look dumn. that's my story and i'm sticking to it. |
| Posted by: cappy 2004-04-15 11:23:15 PM |
| #12 Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't the yellow cake discovered in Europe originally from Iraq no big deal and disappeared down the IAEA black hole? |
| Posted by: Anonymous2U 2004-04-15 10:39:28 PM |
| #11 bah and i thought the scrap metal industry had died a sorry death . |
| Posted by: biggus 2004-04-15 6:47:11 PM |
| #10 Nine comments and no one has made a crack about Iraqi nuke debris from Osirak being found in scrap metal purchased by JEWOMETAAL. You folks are slipping. Sheesh! |
| Posted by: Zenster 2004-04-15 5:22:03 PM |
| #9 The other Mike S- Seems to me capt joe is talking about: including debris from the Osirak reactor and other sites monitored by the IAEA Besides - AlBaradei said they cleaned up a lot of stuff. Where did ther uranium oxide come from? and What is this : The search turned up missile engines and vessels used in fermentation processes that were subject to U.N. monitoring. Where'd they come from? Remember : the inspectors were handcuffed and spied on by Saddam. And those monitoring efforts have been reportedly undermined by the French who were building the original reactor when the Israleis did their own remodeling of it in 1981. |
| Posted by: Anonymous4052 2004-04-15 4:44:02 PM |
| #8 Hey, Cap, READ THE ARTICLE! It talks about how this material was from the nuke the Israelis bombed in 1981. ...from sites that had been subject to U.N. monitoring before the U.S.-led war against Iraq. Of course there were WMD in Iraq. Just not when Bush 43 went on his fishing expedition. |
| Posted by: The Other Mike S. 2004-04-15 4:22:28 PM |
| #7 It is not clear whether the removal of these items has been the result of looting activities in the aftermath of the recent war in Iraq, or as part of systematic efforts to clean up contaminated nuclear sites in Iraq" Other Mike S. - I have never smoked... But, It is not clear. . ., seems a clear ballet by ElBaradei |
| Posted by: Anonymous4052 2004-04-15 4:19:06 PM |
| #6 oh! sorry other Mike, must not forget that they were never WMDs in Iraq. yeah, sure there weren't ;) |
| Posted by: capt joe 2004-04-15 4:11:17 PM |
| #5 Evidence of WMD? What are you guys smoking? The article states that this is equipment from former nuclear sites that we knew about. "It is not clear whether the removal of these items has been the result of looting activities in the aftermath of the recent war in Iraq, or as part of systematic efforts" to clean up contaminated nuclear sites in Iraq, ElBaradei wrote. Geez, talk about grasping at straws.... |
| Posted by: The Other Mike S. 2004-04-15 4:05:56 PM |
| #4 How many of those scrap metal companies are fronts for EU nations covering up their deals with Saddam? |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2004-04-15 2:03:38 PM |
| #3 this is not true - ole teddy and skerry - plus hans and the coalition of the greedy at the un say's so, say's iraq does/didn't have wmd..it's all a Bush lie... |
| Posted by: Dan 2004-04-15 1:13:36 PM |
| #2 How are they going to deny this? Every chemical weapons find was passed off as "insecticide". All bio stuff has been passed of as "pharmaceutical research". Now this? What are they going to say now? Waste from a cancer hospital radiation treatments? These rumors are getting tiresome, to be turned into "Dual Purpose". Dual purpose my a**!!!!! Let us have someone have the balls to say, "Geez- This is really from Saddam's A-Bomb research." |
| Posted by: Anonymous4052 2004-04-15 1:13:29 PM |
| #1 have been smuggled out of Iraq So much for the 'Where are the WMD's?' argument. ElBaradei did not identify the European countries where the materials were discovered. My guess - Phwrance & Germany. |
| Posted by: Raj 2004-04-15 12:59:12 PM |