Egypt's President assigns Madbouly to form new government    Pakistan inflation falls to 30-month low in May    S. Korea inks multi-billion-dollar loan deals with Tanzania, Ethiopia    Egypt's c. bank offers EGP 4b zero coupon t-bonds    Egypt and Tanzania discuss water cooperation    World Bank highlights procedures to improve state-owned enterprise governance in Egypt    Tax policy plays crucial role in attracting investment to Egypt: ETA chief    EU sanctions on Russian LNG not to hurt Asian market    Egypt urges Israeli withdrawal from Rafah crossing amid Gaza ceasefire talks    Parliamentary committee clashes with Egyptian Finance Minister over budget disparities    Egypt's Foreign Minister in Spain for talks on Palestinian crisis, bilateral ties    Egypt's PM pushes for 30,000 annual teacher appointments to address nationwide shortage    Sri Lanka offers concessionary loans to struggling SMEs    Indian markets set to gain as polls show landslide Modi win    Russian army advances in Kharkiv, as Western nations permit Ukraine to strike targets in Russia    Egypt includes refugees and immigrants in the health care system    Ancient Egyptians may have attempted early cancer treatment surgery    Grand Egyptian Museum opening: Madbouly reviews final preparations    Madinaty's inaugural Skydiving event boosts sports tourism appeal    Tunisia's President Saied reshuffles cabinet amidst political tension    US Embassy in Cairo brings world-famous Harlem Globetrotters to Egypt    Instagram Celebrates African Women in 'Made by Africa, Loved by the World' 2024 Campaign    US Biogen agrees to acquire HI-Bio for $1.8b    Egypt to build 58 hospitals by '25    Giza Pyramids host Egypt's leg of global 'One Run' half-marathon    Madinaty to host "Fly Over Madinaty" skydiving event    World Bank assesses Cairo's major waste management project    Egyptian consortium nears completion of Tanzania's Julius Nyerere hydropower project    Swiss freeze on Russian assets dwindles to $6.36b in '23    Egyptian public, private sectors off on Apr 25 marking Sinai Liberation    Debt swaps could unlock $100b for climate action    Financial literacy becomes extremely important – EGX official    Euro area annual inflation up to 2.9% – Eurostat    BYD، Brazil's Sigma Lithium JV likely    UNESCO celebrates World Arabic Language Day    Motaz Azaiza mural in Manchester tribute to Palestinian journalists    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







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Weapons of mass deception
Published in Al-Ahram Weekly on 30 - 12 - 2004

"In Iraq, there was no sign of an 'immediate threat' from weapons of mass destruction." -- Hans Blix, former UN chief weapons inspector
"Based on my experience with the administration in the months leading up to the war, I have little choice but to conclude that some of the intelligence related to Iraq's nuclear weapons programme was twisted to exaggerate the Iraqi threat." -- Joseph Wilson , US diplomat posted to Africa to find out whether Iraq had been purchasing WMD; when he concluded that they had not, his wife was outed as a CIA operative.
"My summary view, based on what I've seen, is we're very unlikely to find large stockpiles of weapons. I don't think they exist." -- David Kay, who stepped down in January 2004 as the special adviser leading the CIA's Iraq Survey Group, a team of experts looking for WMD in the wake of the invasion on Iraq.
The October 2004 final report of the CIA-affiliated Iraq Survey Group, led by Charles Duelfer, a longtime weapons inspector, found no evidence that Iraq produced any weapons of mass destruction after 1991. Duelfer also concluded that Saddam's weapons capability had in fact weakened under UN sanctions. -- The findings of the Duelfer report included the following conclusions:
Chemical weapons: Iraq unilaterally destroyed its hidden chemical weapons stockpile in 1991, and there is no evidence Iraq ever resumed producing such weapons.
Biological weapons: There is no evidence of any biological weapons work after 1996, and Saddam expressed no interest in biological weapons after that time. No evidence was uncovered that Iraq had biological weapons production systems mounted on trucks or rail cars.
Nuclear programme: Saddam ended his nuclear programme in 1991 after the Gulf War, and there is no evidence he tried to restart it. Senior Iraqi officials believed Saddam would restart a nuclear programme if UN sanctions imposed after the end of the Gulf War were halted.
Ballistic missiles: There is no evidence Iraq had any Scud missiles at the time of the US-led invasion.
Compiled by Rasha Saad


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