'Dr. Germ' had bio-weapon program just before war

Newly released document shows how far Saddam regime had advanced

The U.S. Army has released a Saddam-regime document revealing the infamous "Dr. Germ" prepared an analysis as late as 2002 of how to employ biological weapons using aircraft.

The document is part of a collection held by the Foreign Military Studies Office, a research and analysis center under the U.S. Army's Training and Doctrine Command. The material is made available to the public though a website.

The analysis by Dr. Germ, Rehab Rasheed Taha, shows how far the Iraqi regime had advanced on its application of the weapon of mass destruction, notes blogger Ed Morrissey

The document � which begins: "In the name of Allah, most Merciful, most Compassionate" � refers to a March 10, 2002, meeting of the "biological committee" that followed a trip by "delegates" to Moscow.

Taha refers to "aircraft sprayers that are able to scatter dust" and outlines a number of technical issues that indicate the scientist continued to pursue application of biological weapons.

Morrisey notes that in this case, Taha carefully exploited the parameters of U.N. weapons inspectors in order to hide the existence of the source material, its weaponization into the proper size for dissemination and the process by which it's produced.

The memo was issued prior to the vote by Congress in 2002 to authorize force against Iraq. But Morrissey points out its timing also was well after the 9-11 attacks and the renewed focus on the region.

"Saddam and his henchmen not only had every intention of reconstituting their WMD programs, they obviously continued them unabated during the entire twelve-year quagmire while the [weapons inspectors] slept," Morrisey commented.