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| Iraq-Jordan |
| Al Qaida has deployed roadside bombs laced with toxins (in Iraq) |
| 2005-08-16 |
| Hat Tip: World Tribune Al Qaida has deployed bombs laced with toxins in an attempt to increase the lethality of attacks in Iraq, coalition military sources said. On Aug. 9, the U.S.-led coalition found a suspected chemicals factory in Mosul with 1,500 gallons of chemicals. A statement by the Multi-National Force said the facility was used to develop the bombs mixed with toxins. The statement said Sunni insurgents succeeded in employing roadside bombs that contained toxic chemicals. The MNF said coalition forces learned of the facility from suspected insurgents. The statement said the investigation would continue. Meanwhile, U.S. military sources said Iraq has killed a senior aide of Al Qaida network leader Abu Mussib Al Zarqawi. The sources said Mohammed Saleh Sultan was killed in an ambush in Mosul on Aug. 12. The military said on Monday that Sultan, known as Abu Zubeir, was a leading operative in Al Qaida in Iraq. Sultan was said to have held several senior positions in Al Qaida and was accused of directing the bombing attack of an Iraqi police station in Mosul in July in which five policemen were killed. Officials said he was wearing a suicide belt filled with metal pellets when he was killed. Officials said Iraqi and U.S. forces have been particularly effective against Al Zarqawi cells in northern Iraq. They said that since June 2005 at least two Mosul cell commanders were killed. "Abu Zubeir's death, as well as recent captures of terrorists in northern Iraq, is making a difference in coalition and Iraqi security forces efforts to disrupt terrorists operating in this part of the country," Col. Bill Buckner, a coalition spokesman, said. In a letter written to Al Zarqawi and discovered in a raid on an Al Qaida safe house on July 27, an operative complained of the declining quality of the leadership. The letter, by somebody named Abu Zayd, also reported the mistreatment of foreign fighters. |
| Posted by:Captain America |
| #4 Possibly the bomb makers are attempting to imitate the success of the Palestinians, who lace their suicide bombs with rat poison (an anti-coagulant), so that those injured by shrapnel in the explosion subsequently bleed to death regardless of the seriousness of the injury. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2005-08-16 17:19 |
| #3 Speaking of making no sense, the idea of putting toxins in an IED is problematic. 1. There is a good chance you'll contaminate the IED factory. 2. You have a good chance of disabling the IED workers. 3. The heat of the explosion makes a lot of toxins less toxic. |
| Posted by: mhw 2005-08-16 16:19 |
| #2 Well, don't leave us hanging; give details. (Including what you'd do if you were in charge, which I've been meaning to ask about for the last week). |
| Posted by: Phil 2005-08-16 16:00 |
| #1 Hajji is hurting up north. Go thee all of ye and regularly check Michael Yon's blog for the latest in the exploits of one of our fine Army units in Mosul. Perhaps the nitwits up north should look for solace to American media and politics, and even some blogs, where panic and non-starting ideas are in constant supply. Geez. The % of war-supporters making no sense is approaching that of war opponents (95%). |
| Posted by: Verlaine in Iraq 2005-08-16 14:08 |