Syria used Chemical weapons?

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Ridgerunner said:
The Brits destroyed some chemical weapons in iraq just last year. news.yahoo.com/uk-experts-help-iraq-destroy-chemical-residues-144204378.html

They also trained Iraqis in how to dispose of them if (more likely when) more are found. Neither the Brits nor the Iraqis would be doing that training if there was not a strong suspicion more will eventually be found.
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As I recall, there was never any doubt that Iraq had, past tense, a WMD program. The problem was the promotion of an active program with faulty intelligence. Whether the administration’s show and tell was intentionally deceptive is something that history will have to sort out.
I just hope that the US people as a whole do not allow themselves to be swept up in another wave of misplaced patriotic fervor. We have committed enough to the stability of the Middle East in life and fortune, and have precious little to show for it, IMO.
 
oldcelt said:
As I recall, there was never any doubt that Iraq had, past tense, a WMD program. The problem was the promotion of an active program with faulty intelligence. Whether the administration’s show and tell was intentionally deceptive is something that history will have to sort out.
I just hope that the US people as a whole do not allow themselves to be swept up in another wave of misplaced patriotic fervor. We have committed enough to the stability of the Middle East in life and fortune, and have precious little to show for it, IMO.
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Since Saddam did have binary precursors stored in Baghdad and kept the infrastructure for chemical weapons in place, it’s hard to believe he had abandoned the program. And the U.N. inspectors didn’t know about the binary stuff in Baghdad, either, nor did he disclose it to them. Nor do we know what all got shipped to Syria or what might still be found out in that trackless desert that is most of Iraq.

There is precious little to show in Iraq because we cut and ran, leaving the Sunnis and moderate Shia in the lurch. It’s no accident that Al Sadr returned from Iran when our withdrawal reached a critical stage, or that Maliki felt compelled to come to terms with him.

But I agree that the Af/Pak war is misguided.
 
Seamus_L said:
Hopefully Russia can head off an intervention by the West and it’s allies in Syria dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2013/Apr-29/215481-us-says-syria-has-beefed-up-air-defenses.ashx
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Russia is the toothless tiger in this whole drama. Its only true utility for anyone is to give Obama an excuse (The Russian intervention that won’t happen.) to do nothing definitive. That does not, however, prevent Obama from supplying (and likely arming) the Islamist rebels through Turkey.

Knowing or not, voluntary or not, Russia is playing into Obama’s hands in this one.
 
Ridgerunner said:
Nor do we know what all got shipped to Syria or what might still be found out in that trackless desert that is most of Iraq./QUOTE]

I for one do not believe ANYTHING in the way of WMDs got shipped to Syria from Iraq. The Syrians already had more than enough chemical weapons for their own needs. They would have nothing to gain from such a transfer.
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EmperorNapoleon said:
Yellowcake that had been documented and sealed by the IAEA many years before our invasion of Iraq. It remained sealed until one of our bombers blew the facility wide open and Iraqis started looting. Oddly enough, it was reported that they dumped out the yellowcake and took the barrels instead. 🤷
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Yes, I’ve read about that.
 
colmywaykurtz said:
Ridgerunner;10686159:
Nor do we know what all got shipped to Syria or what might still be found out in that trackless desert that is most of Iraq./QUOTE]

I for one do not believe ANYTHING in the way of WMDs got shipped to Syria from Iraq. The Syrians already had more than enough chemical weapons for their own needs. They would have nothing to gain from such a transfer.
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Nothing other than weaponry they didn’t have to pay for, and perhaps even got paid to take. I don’t know, or pretend to know, whether Saddam shipped any of his chemical weapons to Syria or not. One of his generals claimed that he did. But perhaps he was mistaken.
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buffalo said:
Right, the satellites could not see through the canvas.

The intelligence community knew that they were transporting weapons. Saddam also flew his planes into Syria.

Bush took it on the chin on this one because the “hot pursuit” clause would open up another war front. Condoleeza Rice advised him to sit tight.
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In other words, no evidence.

Thanks for making my point.

And I take it you don’t dispute that the USA gave Saddam the WMDs that Saddam would end up using on Iran. You see, the USA not only has a history of using real WMDs, but we also have this penchant for selling them other countries, and then bombing those other countries for having them. Aren’t we so nice?
 
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According to an article in the Atlantic Wire July 27, 2012, President Obama’s Director of National Security, James Clapper, has been outspoken about the transfer of materials from Iraq.
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Code: 
“As director of the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, Clapper said in 2003 that satellite images showing a heavy flow of traffic from Iraq to Syria "unquestionably" show that illicit weapons were moved out of Iraq.”
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According to the Washington Times, Both the United States and Israel have photographs of materials leaving Iraq during this window of time being disputed, around 2004.
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**

examiner.com/article/chemical-weapons-syria-are-those-saddam-s-weapons-of-mass-destruction

I for one, will take the word of Obama nominated director of National Security James Clapper per the transfer of materials from Iraq to Syria.

As stated, Saddam was using poisonous gases against his own population almost daily.
 
EmperorNapoleon said:
Yellowcake that had been documented and sealed by the IAEA many years before our invasion of Iraq. It remained sealed until one of our bombers blew the facility wide open and Iraqis started looting. Oddly enough, it was reported that they dumped out the yellowcake and took the barrels instead. 🤷
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How do you know it remained sealed? If you recall the UN inspectors were kicked out of the country.

As for Saddam shipping WMD out of the country - the UN confirmed that years ago.

worldtribune.com/worldtribune/wmd2.asp
 
SamH said:
How do you know it remained sealed? If you recall the UN inspectors were kicked out of the country.
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Because all of the material was accounted for.
SamH said:
As for Saddam shipping WMD out of the country - the UN confirmed that years ago.
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Scrap metal and missiles devoid of warheads do not constitute WMD.
 
I personally hope Assad wins. But I know there are people who hope otherwise, owing to his human rights record, his possible violations of international law in using chemical weapons, and most especially because of his affiliations with Iran.

In the spirit of airing some of the more articulate exponents of this view, I invite people to read this:

understandingwar.org/report/iranian-strategy-syria
 
Iraq is on the verge of all out Civil War because of the exact same kind of Saudi backed extremists that are destroying Syria. Prime Minister Al-Maliki knows it and is coming out increasingly in favor of the Syrian government.
 
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