from Gulf NewsReuters
Two scientists shot after talking to US team
Two Iraqi scientists were shot in Baghdad after they talked to the US-led team hunting weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and others believe they will be in danger if they collaborate in the search, Washington's chief weapons inspector David Kay said on Friday.
Kay, who is directing the WMD hunt as an adviser to the CIA, presented an interim report to US lawmakers last week that said no banned weapons had yet been found.
Some Iraqi scientists have sought relocation in the US out of fear for the safety of their families, and others who want to stay in Iraq seek security guarantees, Kay told reporters on a conference call. "They believe they are in genuine danger ...if they collaborate with us," he said.
One scientist was "assassinated literally hours after meeting" with a member of the WMD-hunting team, killed by a single shot to the back of his head outside his apartment, Kay said. There were no signs of robbery.
Another scientist, who was "really golden for us," was shot six times but survived, he said. Kay declined to name them.
"The scientist who took six bullets was...key to starting our understanding of the biological weapons programme and pointing us in the direction of others," he said. His nephew was also shot in the incident a month and a half ago, Kay said.
"We engaged in a lot of conversations with him. We perhaps were not as sensitive to his security needs as now in retrospect we realise we should have been," he said.
"It's very difficult to conduct clandestine meetings in Iraq when you have to go pick people up because ...transport was hard to come by."
But Kay said cooperation from Iraqis, inside and outside detention, has increased.
"This is an intelligence-led operation, we are absolutely dependent on the cooperation of Iraqis to help us discover the complete truth about the WMD programmes," he noted.
Two scientists shot after talking to US team
Two Iraqi scientists were shot in Baghdad after they talked to the US-led team hunting weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and others believe they will be in danger if they collaborate in the search, Washington's chief weapons inspector David Kay said on Friday.
Kay, who is directing the WMD hunt as an adviser to the CIA, presented an interim report to US lawmakers last week that said no banned weapons had yet been found.
Some Iraqi scientists have sought relocation in the US out of fear for the safety of their families, and others who want to stay in Iraq seek security guarantees, Kay told reporters on a conference call. "They believe they are in genuine danger ...if they collaborate with us," he said.
One scientist was "assassinated literally hours after meeting" with a member of the WMD-hunting team, killed by a single shot to the back of his head outside his apartment, Kay said. There were no signs of robbery.
Another scientist, who was "really golden for us," was shot six times but survived, he said. Kay declined to name them.
"The scientist who took six bullets was...key to starting our understanding of the biological weapons programme and pointing us in the direction of others," he said. His nephew was also shot in the incident a month and a half ago, Kay said.
"We engaged in a lot of conversations with him. We perhaps were not as sensitive to his security needs as now in retrospect we realise we should have been," he said.
"It's very difficult to conduct clandestine meetings in Iraq when you have to go pick people up because ...transport was hard to come by."
But Kay said cooperation from Iraqis, inside and outside detention, has increased.
"This is an intelligence-led operation, we are absolutely dependent on the cooperation of Iraqis to help us discover the complete truth about the WMD programmes," he noted.
