Comprehensive Report

Detailed Accounting of Iraq’s R-400 BW Aerial
Bombs
Iraq declared and Dr. Mahmud Farraj Bilal contends
that Iraq originally manufactured 200 R-400 bomb
casings for use as BW. Some of these were coated
internally with epoxy for fi lling with “Agent A”
(botulinum toxin) and “Agent B” (Bacillus anthracis
spores). Dr. Bilal maintains that Iraq unilaterally
destroyed 133 or 134 R-400 BW aerial bombs in
1991. In the two months prior to the outbreak of war
in 2003, Iraq excavated two R-400 destruction sites in
‘Aziziyah and recovered the remnants of 133 or 134
R-400 bombs, including eight or nine intact bombs.
UNMOVIC, however, accepted that 128 R-400 were
accounted for at ‘Aziziyah.
Six more bombs were found to be defective prior to
fi lling. Al Hakam personnel discarded these six bombs
in the Euphrates River. Later, UNSCOM retrieved
these from the river.
Dr. Bilal claims that the Iraqis reviewed a videotape
of the UNSCOM-supervised destruction of 60 or 61
empty R-400 bombs at Al Muthanna in 1991. They
noted that 30 of the bombs destroyed had black-stripe
markings, indicating they were epoxy-coated and
intended for BW use. Bilal believes that the remainder
of the 60-61 bombs destroyed on the tape showed
those manufactured for BW use.
The R-400 BW aerial bomb “material balance”
is thus:
200 casing manufactured for BW use
128-134 Filled R-400s unilaterally destroyed at
`Aziziyah (with 8-9 intact bombs), with
UNMOVIC accounting for 128 and Dr.
Bilal stating 134.
60 or 61 Empty R-400 casings deestroyed at Al
Muthanna under UNSCOM supervision
Defetive casings discarded inteh Tigris
6 River by Al Hakam personnel
194-201 Total R-400 casings manufactured for
biological use accounted for.
Dr. Bilal’s recent thinking on the R-400 destruction at
‘Aziziyah and Al Muthanna is at variance with what
Iraq told UNSCOM during the late 1990s. At that
time, Iraq asserted that 157 R-400s were destroyed
at ‘Aziziyah and that 37 were destroyed at Al Muthanna.
When these are added to the six disposed of in
the Tigris, the number equals the 200 R-400 cases
originally manufactured for BW use. Dr. Bilal now
contends that Iraq’s prior claim of 157 destroyed at
‘Aziziyah was based on the diary of an offi cer at the
range and was inaccurate. Bilal’s assertion that 60 or
61 empty cases were destroyed at Al Muthanna is at
variance with UNSCOM data that indicates that 58
R-400s were destroyed under UNSCOM supervision
at Al Muthanna.
Biological
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