Iraq scraps six more missiles

IRAQ scrapped six more banned al-Samoud 2 missiles and three warheads yesterday, and UN inspectors searched for bombs capable of delivering biological weapons Baghdad says were destroyed and buried.

“Six missiles and three warheads were destroyed,” said Hiro Ueki, spokesman for the inspectors.

This brought to 52 the number of al-Samoud missiles destroyed since UN chief weapons inspectors Hans Blix ordered Baghdad to start eliminating the weapons as of March 1. Iraq has 120 al-Samoud missiles whose range exceeds UN limits.

Another team headed to al-Aziziya site to search for more R400 aerial bombs that Iraq said it had destroyed and buried. Iraq says it has destroyed unilaterally its R400 stockpile and that a number of the bombs capable of delivering biological weapons have already been excavated.

Ueki said the inspectors interviewed in private an Iraqi scientist involved in Iraq’s previous weapons of mass destruction programmes.

Iraqi Information Ministry official Uday al-Ta’ae said that a UN-hired, French-made Mirage had carried out surveillance flights on Monday. It came from and returned to Saudi air space. He said a UN inspection team also went to a leather dyeing factory in Nahrawan, south of Baghdad.

Washington says President Saddam Hussein is doing the bare minimum on disarmament and threatens to invade Iraq if it does not disarm. Iraq denies it is developing banned weapons and says it is co-operating with the United Nations to disarm peacefully.