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Peter1469
10-16-2014, 07:18 AM
Since Iraq didn't have chemical weapons (http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/10/14/world/middleeast/us-casualties-of-iraq-chemical-weapons.html?_r=1) our military members who were injured by them got swept under the rug.
Here is a long, but interesting article.


When three journalists from The Times visited Al Muthanna in 2013, a knot of Iraqi police officers and soldiers guarded the entrance. Two contaminated bunkers — one containing cyanide precursors and old sarin rockets — loomed behind. The area where Marines had found mustard shells in 2008 was out of sight, shielded by scrub and shimmering heat.


The Iraqi troops who stood at that entrance are no longer there. The compound, never entombed, is now controlled by the Islamic State.

momsapplepie
10-20-2014, 02:43 PM
But, they weren't there according to liberals!

Peter1469
11-07-2014, 07:36 PM
Here is an update about the non-existent WMDs. (http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/07/world/middleeast/-more-than-600-reported-chemical-weapons-exposure-in-iraq-pentagon-acknowledges.html?_r=1)


More than 600 American service members since 2003 have reported to military medical staff members that they believe they were exposed to chemical warfare agents in Iraq (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/iraq/index.html?inline=nyt-geo), but the Pentagon failed to recognize the scope of the reported cases or offer adequate tracking and treatment to those who may have been injured, defense officials say.


The Pentagon’s disclosure abruptly changed the scale and potential costs of the United States’ encounters with abandoned chemical weapons during the occupation of Iraq (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/iraq/index.html?inline=nyt-geo), episodes the military had for more than a decade kept from view.


This previously untold chapter of the occupation became public after an investigation by The New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/10/14/world/middleeast/us-casualties-of-iraq-chemical-weapons.html)revealed last month that although troops did not find an active weapons of mass destruction program, they did encounter degraded chemical weapons from the 1980s that had been hidden in caches or used in makeshift bombs.

Common Sense
11-07-2014, 07:38 PM
I don't think anyone doubts they had degraded stockpiles from the 80's. They didn't seem to have any active programs.

That being said, that nasty shit in the hands of terrorists is probably not a good thing.

PolWatch
11-07-2014, 08:06 PM
I had friends who were having trouble with the VA over probs from agent orange as recently as 10 years ago. I hope our current vets get better treatment than the VN era did.

waltky
06-29-2017, 01:40 AM
Jihadis Using 'Dark Web' in Pursuit of WMDs...
http://www.politicalwrinkles.com/images/smilies/eek.gif
UN: Terrorists Using 'Dark Web' in Pursuit of WMDs
June 28, 2017 — The U.N.'s disarmament chief warned Wednesday that terrorists and non-state actors are using the so-called dark web to seek the tools to make and deliver weapons of mass destruction.


"The global reach and anonymity of the dark web provides non-state actors with new marketplaces to acquire dual-use equipment and materials," U.N. High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Izumi Nakamitsu told a meeting of the U.N. Security Council. The dark web is a part of the internet that requires special software to access and allows users and website operators to remain anonymous or untraceable, making it appealing to criminals, terrorists and pedophiles. Nakamitsu said that dual-use items are complicating their efforts to address the risks posed by WMD. "We must keep in mind that many of the technologies, goods and raw materials required for developing weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery derive from legitimate commercial applications that benefit many people," she said. Nakamitsu added that it is important to strike the right balance between collective security and commercial opportunity with preventing proliferation.


https://gdb.voanews.com/13508C78-186A-4236-8F3F-E49064BD922C_w650_r0_s.jpg
A still image taken from a video posted to a social media website on April 4, 2017, shows people lying on the ground, said to be in the town of Khan Sheikhoun, after what rescue workers described as a suspected gas attack in rebel-held Idlib, Syria.

Weapons of mass destruction include nuclear, chemical, radiological and biological weapons. "While there are still significant technical hurdles that terrorist groups need to overcome to effectively use weapons of mass destruction, a growing number of emerging technologies could make this barrier easier to cross," Nakamitsu said. In addition to the dark web, she said the use of drones and 3-D printers by non-state actors are also growing concerns. Nakamitsu urged intensified international cooperation to make it harder for terrorists and criminals to illegally traffic sensitive materials.

Chemical weapons

Terrorists have already used poison gas in at least one deadly attack. In Syria, Islamic State used mustard gas on civilians in the town of Marea in August 2015, according to a U.N.-authorized investigation last year. (The same investigators also concluded that the Syrian government carried out at least two chemical weapons attacks on civilians living in rebel-controlled areas in 2014 and 2015.) "The use by non-state actors of chemical weapons is no longer a threat, but a chilling reality," Joseph Ballard, a senior official with the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) told council members.

Ballard said the OPCW is working to enhance the security of the global supply chain of dual-use materials and technologies, including working with international customs officials. He said the organization also works closely with the international chemical industry, to ensure that toxic chemicals do not fall into the wrong hands.

https://www.voanews.com/a/terrorists-dark-web-weapons-mass-destruction-united-nations/3920135.html

See also:

Growing Nuclear Arsenals Increase Concerns About Possible Pakistan-India War
June 26, 2017 - India and Pakistan have fought three wars and have been on the brink of another several times, a worrying prospect given that both have growing stockpiles of nuclear weapons and questions about how secure they are.


The arms race between the South Asian neighbors has moved to enhancing the delivery systems for the warheads, which could annihilate the subcontinent several times. India's recent launch of more than 100 satellites with a single rocket foreshadows the capability of sending up a missile with multiple nuclear weapons. The volatility of the situation is further exacerbated because neither country has a national missile defense system, and it likely would take several years to get one in place.


https://gdb.voanews.com/F92E827B-590E-467F-A9F5-C73F09FACAAE_w650_r0_s.jpg
Supersonic BrahMos missiles are prepared for an exhibition in New Delhi, India

While the policy of mutually assured destruction has kept hostilities from overheating so far, experts believe that a misunderstanding or misadventure could escalate to a full-fledged war with nuclear weapons in play. And there are plenty of risks.

Kashmir a flashpoint

Kashmir has been a flashpoint since the subcontinent was partitioned in 1947 and caused the most recent flare-up last November. Both sides accuse each other of harboring terrorists who launch cross-border attacks. Therefore, the question is whether the nukes in South Asia could fall into the wrong hands during mobilization in the fog of war.


https://gdb.voanews.com/E37E4AC6-2FB3-4BEE-B217-E71617299777_w650_r0_s.jpg
Indian Air Force MIG 21 jet fighters perform during a parade at an airbase in Tezpur, India

Nuclear arms experts Hans Kristensen and Robert Norris estimate that Pakistan has 120-130 nuclear warheads compared with India's 110-120. India is said to have a stockpile of 540 kilograms of weapons grade plutonium, enough to produce 130 warheads. Pakistan has 3,100 kilograms of highly enriched uranium, sufficient to build 300 warheads. That's a lot to keep an eye on. “The nukes were safe when these were in storage areas in both countries,” Michael Krepon, co-founder and senior associate at Stimson Center, said in an interview with VOA's Urdu Service. “But when these have to be moved around in a state of war, it surely raises a red flag about their security on many counts.

Serious concerns (https://www.voanews.com/a/growing-nuclear-arsenals-increase-concerns-about-possible-pakistan-india-war/3917123.html)

Peter1469
06-29-2017, 07:37 AM
First article. The "rescue workers" are not in MOPP gear.

I suspect the "dead" people got off the ground and collected a pay check when the picture taking was done.


Jihadis Using 'Dark Web' in Pursuit of WMDs...
http://www.politicalwrinkles.com/images/smilies/eek.gif
UN: Terrorists Using 'Dark Web' in Pursuit of WMDs
June 28, 2017 — The U.N.'s disarmament chief warned Wednesday that terrorists and non-state actors are using the so-called dark web to seek the tools to make and deliver weapons of mass destruction.


See also:

Growing Nuclear Arsenals Increase Concerns About Possible Pakistan-India War
June 26, 2017 - India and Pakistan have fought three wars and have been on the brink of another several times, a worrying prospect given that both have growing stockpiles of nuclear weapons and questions about how secure they are.