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Powell defends intelligence on Iraqi WMD
Washington, June 13: US Secretary of State Colin Powell says the intelligence around which the United States built its arguments for war in Iraq `isn`t a figment of somebody`s imagination,` and Iraqi nuclear scientists could hold the key to proving the information is accurate.
Washington, June 13: US Secretary of State Colin Powell says the intelligence around which the United States built its arguments for war in Iraq "isn't a figment of somebody's imagination," and Iraqi nuclear scientists could hold the key to proving the information is accurate.
In an interview yesterday with the associated press, Powell said the bush administration believes Saddam Hussein had both deadly weapons and programmes to develop them. He suggested that the United States would help Iraqi scientists if they share what they know about Saddam's weapons.
"Saddam Hussein kept them together so that if the opportunity ever presented itself, he could create nuclear programmes. We want to make sure those scientists are no longer kept together in a cell ... But that they go on to find other things to do," Powell said.
When US and British teams finish their searches of suspected weapons hiding places, their interviews with knowledgeable Iraq is and their exhaustive review of documents, "it will lead us not only, we believe, to weapons that may exist, but to the programmes themselves," Powell said.
"We believe there were weapons in Iraq. We have solid judgment of the intelligence community on this," Powell said.
The weapons Saddam was accused of making and hiding have not turned up, despite weeks of searching since the war in Iraq Ended. That has prompted questions about the accuracy of the intelligence the United States used to glean information about Iraq's arsenal.
Bureau Report
"Saddam Hussein kept them together so that if the opportunity ever presented itself, he could create nuclear programmes. We want to make sure those scientists are no longer kept together in a cell ... But that they go on to find other things to do," Powell said.
When US and British teams finish their searches of suspected weapons hiding places, their interviews with knowledgeable Iraq is and their exhaustive review of documents, "it will lead us not only, we believe, to weapons that may exist, but to the programmes themselves," Powell said.
"We believe there were weapons in Iraq. We have solid judgment of the intelligence community on this," Powell said.
The weapons Saddam was accused of making and hiding have not turned up, despite weeks of searching since the war in Iraq Ended. That has prompted questions about the accuracy of the intelligence the United States used to glean information about Iraq's arsenal.
Bureau Report