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CounterPunch
February
7, 2003
Gassing Iraq
Pentagon Plans
to US Biochemical Weapons
by EDWARD HAMMOND
Top US military planners are preparing for the
US to use incapacitating biochemical weapons in an invasion
of Iraq. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Gen. Richard
Myers, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, revealed the plans
in February 5th testimony before the US House Armed Services
Committee. This is the first official US acknowledgement that
it may use (bio)chemical weapons its crusade to rid other countries
of such weapons. The Sunshine Project and other nonprofits have
warned since late 2001 that the "War on Terrorism"
may result the United States using prohibited biological and
chemical armaments, thereby violating the same treaties it purports
to defend. The US announcement creates grave concerns for the
future of arms control agreements, particularly the Chemical
Weapons Convention.
Rumsfeld stated that plans are being
made for multiple applications, including use of gas or aerosols
on unarmed Iraqi civilians, in caves, and on prisoners. Rumsfeld
reiterated the confusing, typical US official language about
so-called "non-lethal" biochemical weapons, which
is at odds with the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC). Rumsfeld
described applications of a "riot agent" that clearly
imply the complete incapacitation of victims, combatant and
non-combatant, in armed conflict - a definition and usages that
are at odds with the CWC. Rumsfeld acknowledged US ratification
of the CWC but expressed "regret" about its restrictions,
stating that the US has "tangled ourselves up so badly"
on policy for use of incapacitating biochemical weapons. Rumsfeld
indicated that - in his opinion - if President Bush signs a
waiver of long-standing restrictions on US use of incapacitating
chemicals, that the US will be able to legally field them in
Iraq and elsewhere.
An audio file of the testimony from February
5th is posted with this news release at the Sunshine Project
website.
The focal points for US development of
these weapons are the Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate in
Quantico, Virginia, and the US Army Soldier Biological Chemical
Command, located at Edgewood/Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland.
Following their capture in Afghanistan and elsewhere, the US
has used incapacitating chemicals on suspected terrorists "detainees".
In October 2002, Russian Special Forces used a so-called "non-lethal"
incapacitating biochemical weapon when storming the Palace of
Culture Theater in Moscow. It resulted in the deaths of over
100 hostages and was used to facilitate the extrajudicial execution
of as many as 50 Chechen separatists. Before the War on Terrorism
began, British officials stated that they would not cooperate
with the US military in missions where US troops used incapacitating
chemicals.
The Sunshine Project has established
an online clearinghouse of dozens of documents from the US research
program on these weapons, obtained under the Freedom of Information
Act. These are available at the Project's
website.
Edward Hammond
is director of The
Sunshine Project, based in Austin, Texas. He can be reached
at: hammond@sunshine-project.org
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