Was it a chemical weapons plant?

Great Debates
1

Was it ever determined if what was found near Najaf was a chemical weapons factory?

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20030324/ap_wo_en_ge/na_gen_iraq_chemical_plant_3

2

I wonder that too. Even as a conservative and generally in favor of taking this action, I’m really weirded out by how quickly THAT one just dropped off the radar screen. No media saying “yes it was,” no media saying “no it wasn’t,” no coverage even saying “it’s still being looked at.” It just freakin’ disappeared for the most part…

3

Looks like it has been unused since 1998. Latest AP wire:

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/5479416.htm

  • Tamerlane
4

Too bad this thread hasn’t disappeared http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=172079

5

Fox News was too embarassed to admit they jumped the gun? :wink:

6

Interesting thread, 5-time, I’ve been watching it myself. But my post here wasn’t about the reality of what the facility is or is not, it’s about the media silence on what that reality is, and the very unusual nature of that. That thread contains not one cite of a media story about this facility other than the original two. It can’t – the media has been mum ever since.

Whatever one makes of Fox News not issuing a “retraction” (rjung: IMHO if they got it wrong they should dang well say so, but I’m not holding my breath), any reality should still lead to media coverage:

If it were demonstrably NOT a chemical weapons facility, I would expect CNN et al to subtly gloat over their competitor’s misstep by posting a “the widely reported ‘suspected chemical weapons’ plan turned out to be…”

If it demonstrably WERE, then clearly it would be all over the media.

If it was still up in the air, I’d still expect periodical “updates” about it (lack of new info has not prevented recurrent “updates” on any other issue…)

It’s the silence that I find odd.

So aside from any partisan views about various medias’ bias and/or what the place actually is, My point about strange media coverage (or lack thereof) remains: I continue to wonder why pretty much NO media has seen fit to address it in any way after the initial and seemingly premature Jerusalem Post/Fox News stories…

7

The media is mum no longer:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=514&e=5&cid=514&u=/ap/20030325/ap_on_re_mi_ea/war_chemical_plant

8

But if you looked at that thread, you would see that other media (Reuters and Dow Jones) have covered it since then. However, I agree with you that news on the subject isn’t exactly falling into people’s laps. Perhaps they are just waiting until there is more clear word either way. That I don’t know.

9

Note that Squink’s cite refers to, “Preliminary reports from the site.” It sounds like the military doesn’t yet have a final conclusion.

10

Hope springs eternal…

11

pout

Jeez, squink always gets all the credit.

:smiley:

  • Tamerlane