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Africa: North
U.N. Nuclear Inspectors Arrive in Libya
2003-12-28
Libya said its welcoming of the world’s top nuclear watchdog was a ``strategic’’ step and urged all nations - particularly Israel - to dispose of weapons of mass destruction. Abdel-Rahman Shalqam, the foreign minister, in a press conference with U.N. nuclear chief Mohamed ElBaradei, said Libya’s 15-year-old weapons program did not produce any weapons. ``We don’t have weapons of mass destruction,’’ he said Saturday. ``We didn’t arrive to the point of weaponization.’’
"Please, Mr. Rumsfeld, you have to believe us!"
ElBaradei, who arrived with a team of experts earlier in the day, had said earlier that Libya appeared to be far from producing nuclear arms.
Boy, he’s good -- he knew this even before he visited.
Shalqam reiterated what Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi had surprisingly announced more than a week ago: that Libya would cooperate with full transparency with the International Atomic Energy Agency and sign a protocol allowing wide-ranging inspections on short notice. ``We are sure that this step is a strategic one, and we call up on others to follow,’’ Shalqam said. ``This is a clear message to everybody, especially the Israelis, that they must start disposing of weapons of mass destruction.’’
In your wet dreams, Shalqam.
ElBaradei praised Libya’s new openness as a step in the right direction, ``particularly in the Middle East.’’ He said his team would immediately begin technical discussions with Libyan experts and officials and would visit all the relevant sites. Gadhafi said his country’s action might pressure Israel, the only Mideast nation believed to possess nuclear arms, to disarm. Israel refuses to confirm or deny a weapons program.
"Youse guys figger it out fer yerselves!"
Shalqam said the government had started to discuss dismantling Libya’s 15-year-old weapons program about four years ago.
Got a big push after Bush smacked the Taliban, I’ll bet.
ElBaradei said Libya received its weapons equipment ``through Iran the black market and Pakistan middle people.’’ What is known, ElBaradei said on the Vienna to Amsterdam leg of his flight to the Libyan capital, is that the Libyans ``tried to develop an enrichment capability,’’ for uranium, apparently as part of a nascent weapons program that was later abandoned. He said he could not rule out that IAEA teams would find evidence of ``weaponization’’ of uranium through enrichment.
I’m sure he’ll figure it out, look at the great job they did in finding weaponized uranium in Iran.
ElBaradei’s team included Iran and Iraq experts. He said that allowed a ``multidisciplinary’’ approach.
This is just too funny. I’m sure the Iranian experts were very helpful!
Posted by:Steve White

#6  Jennie---Here is a link that presents a timeline for events concerning Egypt's nuclear ambitions in the sixties, just in case you are bored during insomnia.

Posted by: Alaska Paul   2003-12-28 4:43:01 PM  

#5  A. Paul, ARRRRRGGGGHHHH!
I have almost complete insomnia now...!
In Dr. Hamir Hamza's book "Saddam's Bombmaker," he stated over and over that the hyper-vigilance of the IAEA was one of the only successful checks on Saddam's nukeyalar ambitions...
But I'm with you guys: How can we leave checking on the Islamist rogue states to a (jihadi) man named Mohammed???
The "Islam Bomb" was Nasser's idea and he made sure that lots of little Egyptian boys like ElBaradei got the appropriate training and education to make that happen.
Posted by: Jennie Taliaferro   2003-12-28 3:00:38 PM  

#4  Steve---IIRC the article mentioned the nuclear engineering program at the University of Alexandria, where they crank out graduate about 40 per year. Since they have nowhere in Egypt to go for employment, they work in other countries in the Middle Earth East or wind up working for the IAEA. And with them aboard, Ladies and Gentlemen, forever on vigilant watch for WMD, you can all sleep the sleep of babes, no worries.
Posted by: Alaska Paul   2003-12-28 1:18:47 PM  

#3  The egyptian nuke program was started back when they were cozying up to the soviets(60's?). Nuke power and research with the aim of a egyptian bomb. When it became clear the soviets didn't care much for that idea, most of them went to work for the Iraqi nuclear program, just after Sammy took over. From there they took jobs with the UN, I saw one article that over half of IAEA was of Arab or Egyptian origin.
Posted by: Steve   2003-12-28 11:31:43 AM  

#2  Ah, so I'm not the only one who doesn't "get" the joke of an Egyptian Dummy and a Swiss Bon Bon being the UN's chosen weapons inspection teams "chiefs"...

This is a classic example from the "What's wrong with this picture?" series.
Posted by: .com   2003-12-28 7:32:44 AM  

#1  I have often wondered how an Egyptian becomes an expert on nuclear weapons? Does Egypt have them? I mean where did he get his experience - in Iraq,Iran, Libya??
Posted by: Jack is Back!   2003-12-28 3:34:16 AM  

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