World Threats

This is one of those times when we’re reminded to read books and articles from a variety of sources, despite their agendas. A new book called “Curveball,” named after the Iraqi defector who lied about Iraq possessing mobile biological weapons labs, actually has an interesting piece of evidence about Iraq’s WMDs going to Syria.

Although the book casts doubt on the claim and uses the information to paint Administration officials as desparate for anything to justify the invasion of Iraq, the story it tells indicates there may be a body of secret intelligence indicating that Iraq’s WMD went to Syria and Lebanon which the public is unaware of.

According to “Curveball,” Scooter Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney’s Chief of Staff, called the team assigned to locate WMDs in Iraq after Saddam was toppled giving them the coordinates of where he said the WMD were, and the coordinates were in Lebanon.

On a recent edition of the “The Loftus Report” radio show,  former talk radio powerhouse John Batchelor describes how he spoke to a deputy chief of intelligence of a “Middle Eastern ally of the U.S.” who described to him that his service tracked rocket motors arriving in Syria from an “Asian country,” whereupon they went to Iraq.

Then, as the U.S. invasion became imminent, his service watched as the motors were loaded onto trucks and driven into warehouses in Syria. Batchelor opined that the intelligence was used by the U.S. political leadership to justify the invasion because it came from other countries’ sources and doing so would undermine the intelligence relationships we had with those countries.

Former Justice Department prosecutor John Loftus, who once held some of the highest security clearances around, has written a fantastic new article about the Iraqi WMD issue.

Loftus concludes that 1/4 of the WMD was destroyed by UN Inspectors (which Saddam may have allowed simply because those WMDs were degrading and getting old), 1/4 went to Arab allies in the mid and late 1990s, 1/4 was moved to Syria and elsewhere shortly before OIF began with Russian help, and 1/4 remained in Iraq, which was the nuclear material the U.S. failed to locate. He recites the story of Dave Gaubatz about how these nuclear sites were not searched and were looted.

He recites the testimony of John Shaw, who says his office tracked the WMD movement out of Iraq, adding that an intelligence analyst who worked with Shaw confirmed to Loftus that Shaw was telling the truth. Upon leaving Iraq, the WMDs were put in holes 60 feet deep. Loftus also noted that “American charities working in Iraq complained to the press that it was almost impossible to find a clean water truck in Iraq. Almost every one seemed to be flushed out with gasoline–a common measure to eliminate traces of WMD chemicals.”

Loftus also hypothesized that a site in Syria’s Deir al-Zour province was the correct nuclear site that Israel bombed on September 7, 2007. He noted that Debkafile,a controversial intelligence publication, reported that Syria built their nuclear site there in order to irradiate highly-enriched uranium sent there from Iraq with North Korean plutonium to create thousands of “dirty” radiological bombs. Loftus even gives the coordinates of this site, which matches the description of the site Israel bombed, is near a hidden military site, and no longer appears in photos from fall 2007. In the photos after the bombing, the top soil is even removed, and the roads that led to the facility are gone. Pretty amazing stuff that bolsters Loftus’ credibility.

While some question Loftus’ credibility, I’ve never seen any reason to question his integrity, and he’s never been wrong without giving an explanation as to why. And with this latest piece, it’s easy to see why he had a devoted audience listening to his every word on The John Batchelor Show, and continues to have one on The John Loftus Report.

Just a quick note. In Dr. Michael Evans’ new book, “The Final Move Beyond Iraq,” he says that Iraqi intelligence officials confirmed to him that Saddam Hussein’s secret weapons of mass destruction were sent to Syria.

Add one more knowledgeable, well-connected individual to the list…

Olivier Guitta, who reads lots of newspapers in the Middle East, giving him insight that many analysts do not have, has written a good summary of the reports about Syria’s nuclear program.

Guitta creates a pretty good timeline of these reports. For example, in 2003, when Russia mentioned helping construct a nuclear power plant in Syria, and in 2004, a German magazine reported on the CIA and Switzerland’s joint efforts to learn more about nuclear activity in northern Syria, specifically Homs.

He also mentions Con Coughlin’s reporting in the Sunday Telegraph in September 2004 about how a dozen Iraqi nuclear scientists were given new identities and moved to Syria before OIF began, and then went to Iran.

Guitta also is the first (I’m aware of) to report in English what the Kuwaiti paper, Al-Seyassah had to say about Syria. The paper says sources in European intelligence confirmed Syria had an “advanced” nuclear program, largely based on nuclear material and expertise from Iraq, under the orders of Saddam’s sons, before and during the war.

The paper continued, saying that British sources in Brussels reported that a total of 60 Iraqi experts joined the Syrian program before OIF began, and today work alongside scientists from Iran and the former Soviet Union. The British intelligence was corroborated by Germany, the report said.

Source: Guitta, Olivier. “Syria’s Nukes,” Front Page Magazine, January 2, 2007.

Exclusive: A very credible military source, formerly in Iraq, has told me that of an encounter he had that may have been related to Iraqi WMD going to Syria. In October 2004, he spoke to an Iraqi intelligence captain in al-Qaim, who later joined the Iraqi National Guard as a lieutenant-colonel.

This Iraqi said that between February and March 2003, he saw several convoys move into Syria using discreet routes.  The captain said he believed they contained WMD based on what the convoys looked like, how they were guarded, and the discreet routes they took. Obviously, this conclusion is based on circumstantial evidence.

My source said the Iraqi had no reason to lie, that he offered the information casually and without pressure, and was not offered any form of compensation. My source said the captain’s information corroborated the other intelligence had had seen. Contact with the Iraqi was lost a few weeks after he joined the National Guard.

Document http://70.168.46.200/Released/07-24-06/ISGQ-2005-00022470.pdf that was written sometimes after the Iraq war talks about an Iraqi dissident named “Abu Abdallah” who says that Iraqi WMD were moved to Syria before the war on the month of 10 Mouharam (Islamic calendar) i.e. March 10. The document was apparently reviewed by the Department of Defense as you the word D.O.D (in Latin letters) written on the side of the document.

Beginning of the translation http://70.168.46.200/Released/07-24-06/ISGQ-2005-00022470.pdf

Dear Respected Sir

Warm salute… and then

To review with regards and please and return the document to Mrs. Mona after the translation with thanks.

Signature

Abu Abdallah

13/7

To the Respected Responsible for the bureau of follow up and coordination.

CA11 RD

Subject: We have information about the location of the Weapons of Mass Destruction

In the day of 10 Mouharam before the coalition forces started the war on Iraq, 50 trucks for land transportation entered Syria on an intermittent convoy. I met some of the drivers and they did not know what they carried in these trucks. These trucks were loaded from an unknown location in Baghdad and was brought to the drivers and the Iraqi Intelligence was with them. Each time they crossed a certain distance, the Iraqi Intelligence stopped them and asked them what are they carrying and their answer was we do not know. And when these trucks arrived to Syria in the area of Deir Al Zour the drivers were taken out of their trucks and the Syrian Intelligence ride instead. These trucks were entered into large warehouses and when these trucks were emptied it was given back to the Iraqi drivers. And they were given a reward worth of 200 dollars for the safety of arrival. One of the drivers mentioned to me that this was second time they carry these secrets loads and the first time was 1 Mouharam.

I have a friend in Syria who works in a Syrian company as partner with a Syrian merchant. This person is an Iraqi ex-Consul in the Iraqi embassies and he resigned from the diplomatic circle and he has strong connection with the Iraqi Embassy in Syria and he knows all the Iraqi Intelligence and those knows that I work for the Iraqi opposition in Syria. I was visiting him daily during this period to find out the important news. When the trucks entered Syria I went to him and told him that Iraqi Weapons entered Syria so he said to me who told you that and I said to him I knew from my sources, and he told me to keep this confidential and not tell anyone because it indeed entered.

Singature

7/13

Under translation and print

Moustafa Al Khaliye.

D.O.D only, 7/13

A very good symposium can now be found at FrontPageMag.com, consisting of John Loftus, Dave Gaubatz, and myself, about the Iraqi WMD situation.

Followers of this site are familiar with my research on the topic, and probably familiar with the story of Dave Gaubatz. John Loftus had one very interesting quote I wish to emphasize. He is the best-selling author of “The Secret War Against the Jews” and held some of the highest security clearances around when he was a Justice Department prosecutor. He was frequently on The John Batchelor Show breaking stories you couldn’t get anywhere else.

In the interview he has this interesting statement: “Every senior member of a Western, European or Asian intelligence service whom I have ever met all agree that the Russians moved the last of the WMDs out of Iraq in the last few months before the war.”

Source: Glazov, Jamie. “Symposium: Iraq, WMDs, and Other Troubling Revelations,” FrontPage Magazine, May 29, 2006.

The following is the transcript of the video of a man saying he is Iraqi General Ali Ibrahim al-Tikriti, and defected in 1990, recorded with the Iraqi source who put me in contact with him originally. He says he maintained contacts in Iraq since then, including among Iraqi weapons scientists. I’m currently having technical difficulties uploading the video to the web site due to its file size. In it, his voice is disguised and he is shadowed out so you cannot see his face. These were the conditions given in order for me to receive this first video.

A few answers to criticism of this report: First of all, I am not supposed to speak about al-Tikriti’s present life and situation, but I will say his insistence on disguising himself is understandable.

The other major criticism is that he refers to himself as a “Fedayeen General” when the Fedayeen was established in 1995 by Uday Hussein, years after his defection. This is fair criticism and so I asked my Iraqi source who was in touch with al-Tikriti about it. This Iraqi, who is well-connected, said that he had been told by several people that the Fedayeen actually did exist before 1991, but it went through several name changes to ensure secrecy, such as “Al-Tikriti Brigade” and “Saddam’s Force.” This force operated as a secret military force inside the military as well, consisting largely of individuals who were loyal to Saddam Hussein during the Baath Revolution. The Iraqi source also says he spoke to several Kurds who described men dressed all in black raiding Kurdish towns around Sulamaniya actually using the title of “Fedayeen.”

Here is a transcript of that video:

Salaam Americans. I was formerly known as Iraqi Fedayeen Major General, Ali Ibrahim Al-Tikriti. I was one of Saddam’s chief Generals dealing with his secret nuclear, chemical, and biological programs. Our weapons programs were fully operational in the mid-late 1980′s where we used such weapons on numerous occasions against Iranian positions as well as the infamous attack on Halabjah.  

After the Gulf War our weapons programs were driven deep underground to avoid international inspections. We composed an idea of using salvaged parts from Tamuz in the early 90′s as well as research we still had filed to begin construction of a simulation reactor. One of the most critical components was the gas centrifuges. After numerous attempts to acquire specially designed high strength aluminum tubes for these centrifuges we were finally successfully in acquiring these materials in 1999 and early 2000 from Germany.  

As far as the weapons inspections were concerned we devised very lucrative measures to hide our ongoing nuclear projects. For instance we were under strict orders to destroy all materials, memos, and reports pertaining to such projects. Immediately after completion of the orders, we were also given orders at random to abandon nuclear facilities and sites where nuclear, chemical, or biological research was being conducted and to move them to future facilities that were not known about until the materials were ready for transport. Many of the workers used for such transport were immediately purged as to leave few witnesses.  

As for foreign involvement in our programs, much of this can be attributed to the Russian Federation. Moscow directed many programs around the world, Iraq being one of them where chemical weapons and scientists were sent to further develop unconventional munitions. Contingency plans were developed though, in the event that the host nation was compromised, as in the case of the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Spetsnaz forces were sent to retrieve the munitions as well as any materials related to Russian involvement. These programs were designed to build stronger relations with countries that were discordant with the west.  

For those who are still skeptical of the unconventional weapons programs in Iraq, I would offer you to first take a look at Iraq and the obvious uses for such weapons. As well as Saddam’s own insatiable lust of being the great Arab unifier of the Arab world. What better way to gain control except through the means of unconventional weapons which are seen by most as being the end all to western dominance.

In this document ISGZ-2004-028179 there is a report by the Assistant of the Iraqi Intelligence Director to his boss “The Director” dated January/23/2003 regarding the visit of one German and one Frenchman to Iraq and these two guys talk about their strong relation with the top government officials in both France and Germany. In this letter the German that German Chancellor Schroeder was totally opposed to the idea of the war in Iraq and it his opposition to the possible war that made him win the German elections held in 2002. Also there is an important part of the letter where it mention the visit of German Chancellor to meet with the Chinese Prime minister and that the Chinese PM told Schroeder “about the information that was obtained by the Chinese intelligence and it says that Iraq has moved his mass of destruction weapon to Syria and the German Chancellor told him that the German intelligence did not indicate this. And after two days the US state secretary went to Damascus to check on this with the Syrian government that in turn denied this news.” Also in the letter it show the fear of the French to join the war because of the heavy losses that will suffer..

Beginning of the Translation of 4 pages report in document ISGZ-2004-028179

In the Name of God the Most Compassionate The Most Merciful

The Republic of Iraq

The Intelligence Apparatus

The respectful Mr Director of the Apparatus

Subject: The Frenchman Le Floch and the German Dieter Holzer

In the date of 10/1/2003 the two mentioned above arrived to the country in visit for two days only and they did during their stay with the following activities:

1. They met with the deputy of the Industry and minerals ministry and they spoke with him about the possibility of building the non working factories since the year 1991 and provide the country with the spare parts that the ministry needs in the domain of industry.

2. They met with Mr. Ghazi Faysal the chairman of the department First Political Department in the foreign ministry and they spoke with him about the following subjects:

A. The German Holtzer confirmed that Chancellor Shroeder does not like the Leader President but he still oppose the war and it is because of his stand on this he won the latest elections and in case his stand changes this will lead to his loss of the Chancellery and that he hot replacement is ready to win the position and he is the economy minister the German Clement from the ruling Socialist German Party.

B. He mentioned that a meeting in Beijing in the beginning of this month was held between the Prime minister of China and the German Chancellor Schroeder in the occasion of the opening project for the fast train and the latter was asked about the information that was obtained by the Chinese intelligence and it says that Iraq has moved his mass of destruction weapon to Syria and the German Chancellor told him that the German intelligence did not indicate this. And after two days the US state secretary went to Damascus to check on this with the Syrian government that in turn denied this news..

C. He suggested the idea of bringing the Pope John Paul II to visit the country because this visit cause Bush Junior to lose his balance and that he has good relation with the originally German (Ratzinger) in the Vatican and that the latter has influence has influence through waving the card of the financial support that Germany give to the Vatican and it is estimated to be (around 6 billions dollars yearly).

D. He indicated that Chirac became a honorary President of Europe not through elections but through popularity since most of the countries of Europe oppose the war but this man is not courageous and he needs the support of Iraq and for example present what proves that his weapons of mass destruction were destroyed.

C. He express the readiness of French and German companies to execute projects in Iraq as long as the necessary moneys are guaranteed to execute these projects because its revenue decreased lately due the decrease of oil exports.

3.In our meeting with the German Holzer he spoke about the following subjects:

A. He was shown a secret report prepared by the French Army Chief of Staff who presented to Jacques Chirac warning him of the losses that the French troops suffered in Spain and Germany during Napoleon campaigns because the participation of France in the possible war against Iraq will let her suffer huge human losses because it is impossible getting the Iraqi President by aerial bombing and that the entering in street fights will be a disaster for them

B. He intend to buy a residential house in Baghdad under the name of his wife where as his wife is Palestinian and that he visited one of the houses in Arsat and he paid the house own (150) 150 thousand dollars but the latter asked for 300 thousand dollars.

4. Opinion:

A. There phone has been wiretapped for surveillance and they were followed and also the there was phone wiretap of the Syrian Jamal Saba for surveillance because they vist him and to control their relations and we will show the results later.

B. The Paris station informed us that they were coming to the country to prepare for a visit by the ex-German economy minister with a delegation of German companies to the country for commercial purposes and their visit to the country was shortened because this is not the first time we have doubts about their real intentions toward the country.

C. We prpose to continue in following them inside the country and direct the Paris station with the necessity to put them under an operation of check up and verification and observe their connections.

For your review Yours… with regards

The Assistant for the Director of Intelligence

23/1/2003

In another part of the document ISGZ-2004-028179 the Iraqi diplomat in Paris has a secret report about the Frenchman Loik Le Floch and his strong connection and influence over top level French official and French policy maker. This Le Floch is the Iraqi main connection and lobbyist to the French government. You can see in this letter the great interest of the French in Iraqi oil.

Here is some partial translation about Le Floch from the secret Iraqi intelligence report dated 25/11/2002:

Beginning of the Translation:

In the Nmae of God the Most Merciful The Most Compassionate

Secret

To the Foreign Ministry/ The Minister Office

The Frenchman Loik Le Floch

Following up on our letters 351 on 8/9 and 368 on 13/9 and 389 on 23/9 and 427 on 17/10 and 440 on 24/10 below is the following:

1.Upon his return from Iraq in his first visit on 5/7/2002 the counselor of French President Jacques Chirac and officials in the French foreign ministry called him and discussed with him the results of his visit to the country and the possible capabilities to develop the relations in the domain of OIL in Iraq, he confirmed to them the importance of developing the relation with Iraq in all domains including the OIL domain.

2. On the date of 5/9/2002 he met important personalities in the German parties an he confirmed to them the importance of standing with Iraq and he relate to them the same vision shown in the previous paragraph (1) that he related to the French officials ( we previously notified you with this according to letter 251 on 8/9)

3. In the date of 10/9 he met with on of the counselor of the German Chancellor Schroder and he informed him that the latter explained to President during their meeting in Germany from the risks of going behind the American position because their help to her will have dangerous implications on the world and he asked the French President not take any position without consulting with him (You were notified with this according to our letter 368 on 13/9).

4. He learned from his German friends that Chancellor Schroder convinced the French President to take a clear position from any American aggression against Iraq either by using his right for Veto against any new resolution that adopt the American point of view or continuing to refuse the principle of using power (You were notified with this according to our letter 427 on 17/10).

5. After his last visit to Iraq in 27/9 he was met by us and his meeting with Mr. Foreign minister and Mr. Oil minister left a positive effect and he started to defend Iraq and in a big way whether in his meetings with French and German officials or his interview with the TV channels an he confirmed that necessity of standing up against the American domination and he was convinced that his relation with us is best for him in light fo you arranging a meeting with Mr. Oil minister and he try now to distance himself from Saad Al Jader.

6. The German personality that he has strong relation with is the German Dieter Hans Halzer and who visited Iraq last Thursday (our subject letter 440 on 24/10).

7. It is possible to take advantage of the mentioned in the current moment by sending him to meet any personality whether in the Elysee Palace or the French Foreign ministry or the Prime ministry in addition of sending him to Germany when you see that to get her position. Your caring of him during his visit to the country will strengthen our relation with him and his influential and important personality in the French medium. He will be one of the important sources that through it we will penetrate the most important French institutions that fall within the goals mentioned in our annual report.

Please view… Regards

Signature…

24/11/2002

End of translation

Dr. Jack Shaw, the high-ranking Pentagon official who has an amazing story to tell about the disappearance of Iraq’s WMDs, has given new details about it at the Intelligence Summit. The more basic details can be located elsewhere in WorldThreats.com’s archive on the subject.

According to Shaw, Russian Spetsnaz personnel disguised as civilians helped cleanse Iraq of evidence of WMD activity and said he had received information about “steel drums with painted warnings” being transported into a hospital cellar in Beirut, Lebanon. He says the DIA rejected the information, regarding it as “Israeli propaganda,” although it did not come from Israeli sources.

In addition to the WMD shipments on the ground, two Russian ships left the southern Iraqi port of Umm Qasr with WMD materials and dumped them into the Indian Ocean.

According to Ken Timmerman’s reporting from the event (which I also attended and spoke at), Shaw said that his office had a “flow of information from British contacts on the ground at the Syrian border and from London” that confirmed the movement of the trucks carrying WMD. Shaw said the Russians enacted their plan in Iraq after a two-day meeting in Baku that was led by the Russian Minister of Emergency Situations, Sergei Shoigu, who then left for Baghdad alongside two former Soviet generals.

The Changed Baathist: Interview with Ali Ibrahim Al-Tikriti

Ali Ibrahim al-Tikriti says he was southern regional commander for Saddam Hussein’s Fedayeen militia in the late 1980s and a personal friend of the dictator. Units under his command dealt with chemical and biological weapons.  He was known as the “Butcher of Basra” due to his campaigns and defected shortly before the Gulf War in 1991. This interview aims to gain some insight into the current situation in Iraq.

RM: Is there a single incident that you can point to that made you regret your actions and turn against the Baath Party?

IT: The single incident was my wife being willing to stand before me, not as my wife but as an Iraqi, and before one of Saddam’s most brutal enforcers and question my tactics. This really made me think because no one has ever even considered to question the tactics of myself or any others and lived to tell about it. This courageous move made me think deep and hard.

Read the rest of this entry »

The former second-in-command of the Iraqi Air Force, General Georges Sada, claims that Iraq’s WMD stockpiles were moved into Syria, by both air and ground. This transfer was overseen by “Chemical Ali,” Saddam’s dreaded cousin known for ordering the chemical weapons attack on the Kurds, and a cousin of Syrian President Assad who went by various names such as General Abu Ali, Abu Himma, and Zulhimawe.

Sada, also the author of “Saddam’s Secrets,” claims he met two pilots for Iraqi Airways in 2004 that said they transported the weapons. Under the guise of providing humanitarian aid to Syria after a dam collapsed in June 2002, Iraq used two commercial jets, a 747 and a 727, both converted into cargo jets, to carry the weapons. The pilots said the Iraqi Special Republican Guards loaded the WMD, which included yellow barrels with the skull-and-crossbones symbol.

There were two sorties per day and a total of 56 sorties took place into Damascus. A ground shipment also occurred, but no time frame was given for that.

So far, there has been no accurate criticism of Sada’s credibility.

Source:Stoll, Ira. “Iraq’s WMD Secreted in Syria, Sada Says,” New York Sun, January 26, 2006.

The Middle East Quarterly has the following additional evidence that Iraq’s WMD went to Syria:

• The Intelligence Community observed suspicious truck shipments to Syria from Iraq in the days and months before Operation Iraqi Freedom began (Source: Washington Times, October 28, 2004).
• On December 23, 2002, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon warned that “Chemical and biological weapons which Saddam is endeavoring to conceal have been moved from Iraq to Syria,” (Israel’s Channel 2, Dec. 23, 2002).
• About three weeks later, the Israeli Foreign Minister said the same thing (Petah Tiqva, Yoman Shevu’i supplement (Tel Aviv), Feb. 21 2003).
• Former UN weapons inspector in Iraq Richard Butler has confirmed seeing the overhead photos taken and stated his belief that Iraq moved WMD to Syria (Agence France-Presse, April 15, 2003).

Source: Kass, Lee. “Syria After Lebanon: The Growing Syrian Missile Threat,” Fall 2005, Volume XII: Number 4.

There is no specific date given so this blog is given a publishing date of Nov. 1, 2005.

In an interview with WorldNetDaily, the Prime Minister of Albania, whose country was part of the Coalition of the Willing that helped depose Saddam Hussein, hints there is secret information the media has not seen that indicates Iraq’s WMD went to Syria. He said:

“I know much more than media on these subjects. I believe and have seen through my proactive contribution [to the Iraq campaign] and through my contacts with other leaders who have dealt with the Syria question that the possibility of weapons transfers cannot be excluded.”

Source: Klein, Aaron. “Albania ‘Ready to Join the International Community’,” WorldNetDaily.com, June 1, 2005.