[Mitchell]

It turns out that this report had already been discredited back on April 1, 2004. See http://www.promedmail.org, Archive number 20040401.0884.

The claim should never have appeared in a news article dated May 11, 2004. It was a recycled news story, already known to be false. (And the supposed contagiousness was a giveaway that it was bogus anyway.)

In the interest of putting false rumors to rest, I've pinged everybody who had posted to this thread.

[alnick]

Thanks.

[swilhelm73]

Well, I'd normally complain quite profusely about a paper confusing actinomycosis with anthrax and 0 deaths with 6. But then again, unlike, the Boston Globe and Daily Mirror, at least they didn't purposely run a false story.

[bwteim]

Thank you for the update.

[cgk]

*ping* -----

[piasa]

A year before this report, in the same general area of Iraq [MOSUL]... might be why the press there is a bit edgy about anthrax:

MAY 12, 2003 : (REPORT: MOBILE LABS FOUND IN NORTHERN IRAQ NEAR MOSUL ) MOSUL DISCOVERY : Meanwhile, U.S. officials said the mobile laboratories were found at a bombed-out rocket and missile factory near Mosul in northern Iraq. One of the trailers was missing its canvas cover, wheels and plumbing — most likely taken by looters — but the essential parts, including a compressor and dryer needed to produce weapons grade anthrax, were intact. ---- "REPORT: "Dr. Germ" now in U.S. custody - U.S. says ‘Dr. Germ’ surrendered in Baghdad; Iraqi scientist conducted research that led to bioweapons, U.S. says ," by Miklaszewski, Tammy Kupperman, Robert Windrem, AP & Reuters staff, MSNBC NewsAlert, May 12, 2003