Posted on 10/26/2004 12:32:57 PM PDT by ambrose
Possibility raised that explosives had disappeared before U.S. soldiers secured Al-Qaqaa complex By Associated Press October 26, 2004
NEW YORK - An NBC News reporter embedded with a U.S. army unit that seized an Iraqi installation three weeks into the war said Tuesday that she saw no signs that the Americans searched for the powerful explosives that are now missing from the site.
Reporter Lai Ling Jew, who was embedded with the Army's 101st Airborne, Second Brigade, said her news team stayed at the Al-Qaqaa base for about 24 hours.
"There wasn't a search," she told MSNBC, an NBC cable news channel. "The mission that the brigade had was to get to Baghdad. That was more of a pit stop there for us. And, you know, the searching, I mean certainly some of the soldiers head off on their own, looked through the bunkers just to look at the vast amount of ordnance lying around.
"But as far as we could tell, there was no move to secure the weapons, nothing to keep looters away."
On Monday night, NBC reported that its embedded crew said U.S. troops did discover significant stockpiles of bombs, but no sign of the missing HMX and RDX explosives.
The NBC report came after the U.N. nuclear agency told the Security Council on Monday about the disappearance of the 377 tons of high explosives, mostly HMX and RDX, which can be used in the kind of car bomb attacks that have targeted U.S. forces.
Iraq blamed "theft and looting ... due to lack of security."
The disappearance raised questions about why the United States didn't do more to secure the Al-Qaqaa facility 30 miles south of Baghdad.
Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said coalition forces were present in the vicinity of the site both during and after major combat operations, which ended on May 1, 2003. He said they searched the facility but found none of the explosives in question or weapons of mass destruction.
"The forces searched 32 bunkers and 87 other buildings at the facility, but found no indicators of WMD," Whitman said Monday.
That raised the possibility that the explosives had disappeared before U.S. soldiers could secure the site in the immediate invasion aftermath.
However, Iraq's Ministry of Science and Technology told the IAEA the explosives disappeared sometime after coalition forces took control of Baghdad on April 9, 2003.
The NBC team accompanied the 101st Airborne at Al-Qaqaa the following day _ on April 10, 2003.
Lai Ling told MSNBC that there was no talk among the 101st of securing the area after they left.
She said the roads were cut off "so it would have been very difficult, I believe, for the looters to get there."
Why would America leave the security of it's country up to the United Nations?
All members in Congress and the Senate are killing Americans by supporting the United Nations.
TREASON
"Possibility raised....."
heheheh. I love to see them dance.
The stuff is in my shed where I am holding Bin Laden.
Why is everyone relying solely on NBC as to what was, or was not found. Why not ask the 101st Airborne.
Hahahah they can't even hide their lies..
Yea, because it's so easy to hide 380 tons of this stuff..
"We stopped at the building, but nobody went inside and checked things out."
If you believe that, I have some swampland for sale.
Everyone, see this post too. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1257746/posts
Um, roads were cut off and we are talking about 40 semi-loads of this stuff.
What day was Lai Ling Jew at the site with the 101st on their way to Baghdad? It would seem this article is suggesting (and Ms. Jew is as well?) that the weapons went missing in between the time the 101st was there for 24 hours and April 10.
If that is all the MSM/Dems have left, then they have nothing.
Everyone, see this post. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1257746/posts
Ya think?
You KNOW the wheels must be coming off if AP is reporting on it....
A_R
Because:
"The mission that the brigade had was to get to Baghdad. That was more of a pit stop there for us."
But:
Iraq blamed "theft and looting ... due to lack of security."
However:
"[Ling] said the roads were cut off "so it would have been very difficult, I believe, for the looters to get there."
"Counsel, meet me in chambers..."
In doing so, he once again stomps on the U.S. military and the way they do their job under the guise of criticizing the CIC.
John Kerry fails any test of leadership and every poll on that specific question proves the people of the United States understand that.
Also, how many trucks would be needed to haul 377 tons of high explosives? I'm betting that at a MINIMUM, 40 trucks. Can anyone explain how at least 40 trucks slipped by the US army?
And it's quite possible that the AP is a fraud, along with the NY Slimes and SeeBS. They have shown that their agenda is more important to them than the security and safety of this country. They can all go to hell.
Does this come from the Misistry of "Well no S#!t!"?
Difficult for looters to get there? what about 40 big trucks in plain sight while our forces were there,,I think not.
Makes a lot of sense to me!
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