Washington: In a bid to bolster its case for a military offensive on Iraq, the US
has decided to declassify some of the intelligence it has gathered on how Iraq
concealed banned weapons and related equipment from the arms inspectors.
After a lengthy debate on what and how much to disclose, President George W Bush and
his national security advisors have decided to make some of the intelligence on Iraq
maintaining banned weapons public, 'The Washington Post' reported on January 28.
The report said Bush could release the information as early as next week in an
effort to convince both the US public as well as reluctant allies about the need to
take action against Iraq.
"The United States possesses several pieces of information which come from the work
of our intelligence that show Iraq maintains prohibited weapons," Secretary of State
Colin Powell was quoted as telling an Italian newspaper.
"Once we have made sure it can be done safely, I think that in the next week or soon
after we can make public a good part of this material," Powell said.
The US has found that senior Iraqi officials and military officers who report to
members of Saddam Hussein's inner circle have personally directed the movement and
camouflage of weapons, the report said.
The weapons are hidden away days or hours ahead of visits by UN arms inspectors, it
said.
Citing a recent example, a source said an Iraqi official issued a warning that UN
inspectors were planning a visit and directed those at the site to conceal specific
prohibited weapons.
PTI
