The Iraqi inspection progression thread
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HeXp£Øi±
Well-Known Member
Iraq inspectors 'given full access'
The inspectors will fan out over the country
United Nations weapons inspectors say they were given full access by the Iraqis to sites they wished to see during their first field visit for four years."The team was able to complete the inspection work as it planned with the co-operation of the Iraqi side and we had access to what we wanted to see," said the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) Jacques Baute, who led one of the two teams which went to work on Wednesday.
And Dimitri Perricos, leader of the team from the UN monitoring mission (Unmovic), said the "immediateness" of the access given was a "good sign" for future inspections.
Both sites are reported to have been inspected in the 1990s, before UN inspectors left the country complaining that Iraqi officials were obstructing their work.
Mr Perricos said that the inspectors were given data including computer circuits which would enable them to assess the capabilities of the sites further. The inspectors are using state-of-the-art technology to try to find out whether Iraq has any weapons of mass destruction.
Their findings could determine whether the US carries out its threat to lead a military assault on Iraq.
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said the work had got off to "a fairly good start" and urged Baghdad to sustain co-operation.
The inspections were authorised by the UN Security Council in a resolution unanimously agreed earlier this month, which aims to compel Iraq to disarm or face "serious consequences".
'No problems'
The two teams set off from the UN's Baghdad offices at the former Canal Hotel at 0530 GMT. Mr Baute's team drove to a site north-east of the capital, and Mr Perricos' to a graphite plant in al-Amariyah, 40 kilometres (25 miles) south-west of Baghdad.
The BBC's Ben Brown followed the team visiting the al-Tahadi factory, in the al-Rashad suburb about 13km north-east of the capital.
The plant's director, Haitham Mahmoud, showed journalists around and told them the factory made machine parts for use in oil and cement production - nothing to do with weapons of mass destruction.
He said his staff had co-operated fully and had been told by the inspectors that there were no problems.
The inspections coincided with air raid sirens over Baghdad, which Iraqi officials said were set off by Western planes. The US and UK both denied this.
In the days ahead, the UN inspectors are expected to spread out over Iraq in search of mobile laboratories, underground factories and other signs of banned Iraqi weapons production.
Under the terms of the resolution, Baghdad has until 8 December to produce a list of any nuclear, chemical or biological weapons in its arsenal - the accuracy of which weapons inspectors will be asked to verify.
The resolution also demands that Iraq provide complete access to all sites, including mosques and presidential palaces - locations which inspectors were frequently turned away from in the 1990s.
Evidence required
Although the inspectors have refused to reveal their itinerary, it is thought they will concentrate first on installations that were inspected in the 1990s, to see if equipment left there is still working.
Eventually there will be 100 inspectors working in Iraq at any one time - including biologists, chemists, missile and ordnance experts, engineers and physicists.
On top of the evidence his team collects, chief weapons inspector Hans Blix has told Baghdad that it must provide "convincing" proof that it no longer has weapons of mass destruction.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/2520361.stm
The inspectors will fan out over the country
United Nations weapons inspectors say they were given full access by the Iraqis to sites they wished to see during their first field visit for four years."The team was able to complete the inspection work as it planned with the co-operation of the Iraqi side and we had access to what we wanted to see," said the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) Jacques Baute, who led one of the two teams which went to work on Wednesday.
And Dimitri Perricos, leader of the team from the UN monitoring mission (Unmovic), said the "immediateness" of the access given was a "good sign" for future inspections.
Both sites are reported to have been inspected in the 1990s, before UN inspectors left the country complaining that Iraqi officials were obstructing their work.
Mr Perricos said that the inspectors were given data including computer circuits which would enable them to assess the capabilities of the sites further. The inspectors are using state-of-the-art technology to try to find out whether Iraq has any weapons of mass destruction.
Their findings could determine whether the US carries out its threat to lead a military assault on Iraq.
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said the work had got off to "a fairly good start" and urged Baghdad to sustain co-operation.
The inspections were authorised by the UN Security Council in a resolution unanimously agreed earlier this month, which aims to compel Iraq to disarm or face "serious consequences".
'No problems'
The two teams set off from the UN's Baghdad offices at the former Canal Hotel at 0530 GMT. Mr Baute's team drove to a site north-east of the capital, and Mr Perricos' to a graphite plant in al-Amariyah, 40 kilometres (25 miles) south-west of Baghdad.
The BBC's Ben Brown followed the team visiting the al-Tahadi factory, in the al-Rashad suburb about 13km north-east of the capital.
The plant's director, Haitham Mahmoud, showed journalists around and told them the factory made machine parts for use in oil and cement production - nothing to do with weapons of mass destruction.
He said his staff had co-operated fully and had been told by the inspectors that there were no problems.
The inspections coincided with air raid sirens over Baghdad, which Iraqi officials said were set off by Western planes. The US and UK both denied this.
In the days ahead, the UN inspectors are expected to spread out over Iraq in search of mobile laboratories, underground factories and other signs of banned Iraqi weapons production.
Under the terms of the resolution, Baghdad has until 8 December to produce a list of any nuclear, chemical or biological weapons in its arsenal - the accuracy of which weapons inspectors will be asked to verify.
The resolution also demands that Iraq provide complete access to all sites, including mosques and presidential palaces - locations which inspectors were frequently turned away from in the 1990s.
Evidence required
Although the inspectors have refused to reveal their itinerary, it is thought they will concentrate first on installations that were inspected in the 1990s, to see if equipment left there is still working.
Eventually there will be 100 inspectors working in Iraq at any one time - including biologists, chemists, missile and ordnance experts, engineers and physicists.
On top of the evidence his team collects, chief weapons inspector Hans Blix has told Baghdad that it must provide "convincing" proof that it no longer has weapons of mass destruction.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/2520361.stm
HeXp£Øi±
Well-Known Member
Small but symbolic start to UN mission
Kim Ghattas
BBC correspondent in Baghdad
UN weapons inspectors are back in action in Iraq this morning, carrying out the first such inspections for four years.
The 17 UN experts left the Al Hyatt Tower Hotel early and headed to their re-established headquarters in the former Canal Hotel.
Equipment was prepared and inspected earlier and awaited them in a state of readiness. Following their briefings the inspectors split into two teams to begin their work - one included nuclear experts, the other biological experts.
They left the compound accompanied by officials from Iraq's national monitoring directorate and headed in their different directions to target the already identified sites.
Element of surprise
The UN's land cruisers driving at high speeds were followed by over 50 cars, packed with journalists eager to find out where the inspectors were heading.
Many journalists had been staking out both the inspectors' hotel and the UN compound from very early morning, not wanting to miss out on the beginning of the operations. It was a scene of near-pandemonium as cars tried - some in vain - to keep up with the high-speed convoy.
Until the last minute, the location of the inspection remained unknown.
The inspectors said the element of surprise was crucial for their work.
Team leader Jacques Baute said the more unannounced visits, the more credible the results to the UN Security Council.
One of the teams chose a site thought to be called Al Faldalia, a former women's prison on the north outskirts of the city.
The inspectors were greeted cordially by the Iraqis there and gained easy access to the area which measured about 300 x 300 metres.
Some journalists from the large media scrum were initially allowed in too, but Iraqi officials then pushed them out again.
The inspectors have made it clear they will not allow journalists on the sites during their inspections.
They said they wanted to keep as much distance as possible between them and the media
Within minutes of the inspectors' arrival, three cars full of Iraqi intelligence staff drove up. They pushed through the waiting journalists at the perimeter and monitored the actions of the inspectors.
Partial picture
The inspectors have said they expected full co-operation from the Iraqis and said that with the world watching, they should not play the hide-and-seek games that were common during the inspections of the 1990's.
Unmovic has warned it will impose a freeze on all movements during the inspection of a site to prevent any incriminating documents or equipment from being taken away
But Iraq continues to maintain the UN teams will find nothing. Hans Blix, the chief UN inspector, has said it will be up to Iraq to prove it has no weapons of mass destruction - and to that end Iraq has to provide a full record of all their chemical, biological and nuclear weapons by 8 December.
The UN inspectors have 60 days to report back to the UN Security Council, although a spokeswoman said this report would only provide a partial picture.
Wednesday's inspections were small, but highly symbolic at two non-controversial sites.
Hans Blix, the chief UN inspector, has said it will be up to Iraq to prove it has no weapons of mass destruction - and to that end Iraq has to provide a full record of all their chemical, biological and nuclear weapons by 8 December.
It is the start of a long and slow process in searching hundreds of venues across this sprawling country. It is thought the inspections will take up to a year to complete.
Epic traffic jam
There are only 17 inspectors currently in Baghdad - 11 are members of UNMOVIC and six are experts from the Atomic Energy Authority, but up to 100 others are preparing to join them in their mission by the end of the year.
Their work has received little attention in the state-run Iraqi media. On Tuesday some publications did make reference to the inspections, but they are not making the headlines.
For the ordinary people of Baghdad, it is not the inspectors who are the talk of the town. However the terrible traffic jam caused by the convoy at about 0830 alerted the population to the fact that something is now happening.
It is the start of a long and slow process in searching hundreds of venues across this sprawling country. It is thought the inspections will take up to a year to complete.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/2518049.stm
Kim Ghattas
BBC correspondent in Baghdad
UN weapons inspectors are back in action in Iraq this morning, carrying out the first such inspections for four years.
The 17 UN experts left the Al Hyatt Tower Hotel early and headed to their re-established headquarters in the former Canal Hotel.
Equipment was prepared and inspected earlier and awaited them in a state of readiness. Following their briefings the inspectors split into two teams to begin their work - one included nuclear experts, the other biological experts.
They left the compound accompanied by officials from Iraq's national monitoring directorate and headed in their different directions to target the already identified sites.
Element of surprise
The UN's land cruisers driving at high speeds were followed by over 50 cars, packed with journalists eager to find out where the inspectors were heading.
Many journalists had been staking out both the inspectors' hotel and the UN compound from very early morning, not wanting to miss out on the beginning of the operations. It was a scene of near-pandemonium as cars tried - some in vain - to keep up with the high-speed convoy.
Until the last minute, the location of the inspection remained unknown.
The inspectors said the element of surprise was crucial for their work.
Team leader Jacques Baute said the more unannounced visits, the more credible the results to the UN Security Council.
One of the teams chose a site thought to be called Al Faldalia, a former women's prison on the north outskirts of the city.
The inspectors were greeted cordially by the Iraqis there and gained easy access to the area which measured about 300 x 300 metres.
Some journalists from the large media scrum were initially allowed in too, but Iraqi officials then pushed them out again.
The inspectors have made it clear they will not allow journalists on the sites during their inspections.
They said they wanted to keep as much distance as possible between them and the media
Within minutes of the inspectors' arrival, three cars full of Iraqi intelligence staff drove up. They pushed through the waiting journalists at the perimeter and monitored the actions of the inspectors.
Partial picture
The inspectors have said they expected full co-operation from the Iraqis and said that with the world watching, they should not play the hide-and-seek games that were common during the inspections of the 1990's.
Unmovic has warned it will impose a freeze on all movements during the inspection of a site to prevent any incriminating documents or equipment from being taken away
But Iraq continues to maintain the UN teams will find nothing. Hans Blix, the chief UN inspector, has said it will be up to Iraq to prove it has no weapons of mass destruction - and to that end Iraq has to provide a full record of all their chemical, biological and nuclear weapons by 8 December.
The UN inspectors have 60 days to report back to the UN Security Council, although a spokeswoman said this report would only provide a partial picture.
Wednesday's inspections were small, but highly symbolic at two non-controversial sites.
Hans Blix, the chief UN inspector, has said it will be up to Iraq to prove it has no weapons of mass destruction - and to that end Iraq has to provide a full record of all their chemical, biological and nuclear weapons by 8 December.
It is the start of a long and slow process in searching hundreds of venues across this sprawling country. It is thought the inspections will take up to a year to complete.
Epic traffic jam
There are only 17 inspectors currently in Baghdad - 11 are members of UNMOVIC and six are experts from the Atomic Energy Authority, but up to 100 others are preparing to join them in their mission by the end of the year.
Their work has received little attention in the state-run Iraqi media. On Tuesday some publications did make reference to the inspections, but they are not making the headlines.
For the ordinary people of Baghdad, it is not the inspectors who are the talk of the town. However the terrible traffic jam caused by the convoy at about 0830 alerted the population to the fact that something is now happening.
It is the start of a long and slow process in searching hundreds of venues across this sprawling country. It is thought the inspections will take up to a year to complete.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/2518049.stm
unclehobart
New Member
They are finding out that they have been expected at each location that they have gone to. Apparently they have found a dozen bugs at their HQ so far and more pop up every day.
HeXp£Øi±
Well-Known Member
I watched something last night, interviews with the previous inspectors. They said what what haunts them most about the former inspections is the fact that many of the people they questioned were never heard from again after the interviews. In fact, some said they new by asking certain questions they were signing the death warrents of certain Iraqi workers as their 'security' personnal stood by and observed everything. But what are you gonna do? 
(this is a statement of mockery not seriousness)