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Iraq admits radiation bomb project in letter to UN

Special to World Tribune.com
MIDDLE EAST NEWSLINE
Saturday, May 12, 2001

NICOSIA — Iraq has acknowledged an attempt to develop a radiation bomb for use against Iran.

The Iraqi admission came in a letter to United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan on Monday. The letter said Baghdad dropped the idea because the radiation bomb was not deemed as feasible.

The letter to Annan from Iraq's envoy to the UN, Mohammed Douri, said the regime of President Saddam Hussein examined the proposal in 1987, a year before Iran announced a ceasefire. The bomb was meant for use against Teheran.

"[An] Iraqi expert introduced the idea of making a defensive radiation bomb," the letter said. "Specialists studied the technical and practical aspects of the idea and then decided it was not useful. It was found out that the bomb would contaminate soil and plants. The idea died and the bomb was not manufactured."

Last month, U.S. officials confirmed that Iraq was suspected of conducting a radiation bomb test in 1987. Such a bomb is meant to spread deadly radiation without the blast of nuclear weapons.

Iraq has denied that it conducted a radiation bomb test. The letter, quoted by the official Iraqi News Agency, said Baghdad informed the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency of the radiation bomb project. It did not elaborate.

The UN said on Wednesday that its sanctions committee has suspended 71 contracts with Iraq in the communications sector worth $208 million. The United States has blocked many of these contracts out of concern that they are being used to improve military communications and anti-aircraft systems.

In a related development, the U.S. Defense Department is examining a recommendation by two senior U.S. military commanders to reduce patrols by U.S. and British jets over northern and southern Iraq. U.S. Central Command chief, Gen. Tommy Franks, and Air Force Gen. Joseph Ralston warned that Iraq was improving its capability of shooting down Western planes.

Saturday, May 12, 2001


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