US found date-stamped Iranian weapons in Iraq: report

[maddezmom]

Source: AFP

NEW YORK (AFP) - The US military says it has found Iranian-made mortars, rockets and explosives in Iraq bearing recent date stamps, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

"You can see the manufacturing dates right on the armaments themselves," a senior commander in Baghdad was quoted as saying. "These are very clearly weapons that were made in the last month or so."

Iran denies supplying ammunition to Iraqi militants, or training them.

Earlier this week, a US general in Iraq said that the increasingly sophisticated attacks carried out by Shiite extremists were evidence that they were getting extra aid from Iranian groups in the country.



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080425/wl_mideast_afp/usiraqunrestiranweapons_080425110848;_ylt=Ak17WsNTkgi5A_zyKev6aMpX6GMA

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we need a war drum emoticon.

[Orrex]

1. Why the hell would they date-stamp weapons?

Hell, everyone knows that you post-date a check when you want to create the illusion that you paid your bill earlier than you really did!

[ohio2007]

7. LOL.... b/c it's a QC issue

find out who has been shirking on the assy line if a batch of duds fails to go off or worse
maybe some on site inspections

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IS6EuDa5-bs&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVrWO4MQWZE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYTT5Uooht0&feature=related

[tekisui]

2. Time to Obliterate!

:puke: :mad:

[Jim__]

3. Probably in English too! - n/t

[LynnTheDem]

4. Compared to how many date-stamped US-made weapons?

Any "secret anti-IED" stuff, for example???

:rofl:

Keep on catapulting that "Iran supplies weapons to Iraq" propaganda, bUsh! The stupidest MFers in America will blindly swallow it up, as always!

[fasttense]

5. Oh not this old story again.

They tried to do the same thing a few years ago. Seems they didn't realize Iran uses a different calendar system and the dates on the supposed weapons were in US calendar notations. I wonder if this is more of the same?

[darue]

6. so it's "black market" then. not hard to believe some iranian hardware goes missing

heck, we've got sensitive secret military hardware for sale on eBay the GAO reports....

[acmavm]

8. Wait until they find the signed receipt.

:sarcasm:

[VWolf]

9. Was it a "good until" stamp

or a "born on" stamp

:rofl:

[UpInArms]

10. rolling out the new product line earlier with each new war model, aren't they?

It's just that I can't get that one quote from Chief of Staff Andrew Card out of my head, the one where's he talking about selling the voters on the administration's Iraq policy: "From a marketing point of view, you don't introduce new products in August."

But when I read the U.N. speech, it was also fairly persuasive. (And when I read Vice President Tony Blair's dossier, I was further impressed.) It's just that I can't get that one quote from Chief of Staff Andrew Card out of my head, the one where's he talking about selling the voters on the administration's Iraq policy: "From a marketing point of view, you don't introduce new products in August."

(Note: In earlier editions of this column, I inaccurately quoted Mr. Card. I quoted him as saying, "From an advertising point of view, you don't launch a new product line until after Labor Day." The incorrect version of the quote was in a transcript of Mr. Gore's speech on Iraq. I apologize for the serious mistake, which was entirely my fault.)

War as "product line." The Founders would be so proud. Lincoln too.

[hatrack]

11. WTF?!?! Iran may be involved with military and political groups within Iraq?!?!

No way, man!!!!

:sarcasm:

Shocking!

[Viva_La_Revolution]

12. deja-vu.

They tried this last year. I guess they figured we wouldn't remember..

February 28, 2007
But skepticism abounds about the origin of the weapons, with critics wondering why those alleged to have been made in Iran had markings in English, not Farsi. And Monday, the New York Times printed a letter from an Iranian diplomat who said dates on some of the weapons shown - including a warhead marked 5-31-2006 - prove the U.S. claims are "preposterous."

"The dates are in the American date format - month first, day second - whereas the rest of the world does not use this format," wrote M.A. Mohammadi, press secretary for Iran's U.N. mission. Iran and most other countries put the day first, followed by month and year.

Judging from photos on the Web site of Defense Industries Organization, which makes weapons for sale as well as for the country's own defense, Iran does use English lettering - such as HE for "high explosives" - on at least some weapons in accord with international standards. However, none of the weapons shown on the company's site appear to be dated.

There are also visible differences between 81mm mortar shells known to be made by Iran and those displayed Feb. 11 by the U.S. military at a Baghdad briefing. The Iranian mortar shell has four horizontal ribs below the lettering and no date; the one shown in Baghdad has three ribs above the lettering and the date 3-2006.

http://www.sptimes.com/2007/02/28/Worldandnation/Gray_weapons_market_c.shtml

[cain_7777]

13. All the weapons coming from Saudi are American made and blend in with our military's spent weaponry

Not a word about Saudi insurgents or funding.

[magellan]

38. Yep, that could've been proved easily, long ago

...if anyone in this crack-smoking administration cared to look. Too bad they don't mind if our Saudi friends are arming the Iraqi Sunnis, and those weapons have doubtless been used to injure/kill our troops.

[bluesmail]

14. not only history repeats itself, the reasons for invasion do too!

[Javaman]

15. "must eat before March of 20012". nt

[boilinmad]

16. Sorry, American arms dealers....

....You cant have ALL the customers in the world !

[Tempest]

17. The weapons could have come from American arms dealers

It's not like they are going to honor sanctions against Iran or other countries.

The weapons could have come from Iran via Syria passed on to Lebanon and then sold to anyone who then delivered them to Iraq fighters.

[moondust]

43. Or anywhere.

There could be countless arms dealers in the Middle East and elsewhere who may be buying up weapons wherever they can get them and unloading them in Iraq for a PROFIT. Third parties, black market, you name it...

[uppityperson]

18. To remind any who need reminding, there is a difference between the gvt of Iran, and Iranian people.

Not that DUers need reminding, but there probably are Iranian weapons in Iraq. Bought by Iraqis from someone in Iran. This is a big difference from The Gvt of Iran supplying Iraq with weaponry though.

[Parche]

19. HERE IS THE ACTUAL DATE STAMP PHOTO

[Amonester]

37. Dates way back to the Iran-Contra years. /nt

Cheney wants that oil at any cost.

[Rammy]

20. Here We Go US finds *new* Iranian weapons in Iraq

Source: Wallstreet Journal

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. military says it has found caches of newly made Iranian weapons in Iraq, leading senior officials to conclude Tehran is continuing to funnel armaments into Iraq despite its pledges to the contrary.

Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120908648760443713.html?mod=rss_whats_news_us

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Just as most people have feared, evidence is surely being planted to start an occupation of Iran!

[and-justice-for-all]

21. they have their own military..

with modern weapons...so of course they have caches of weapons.

[bdamomma]

22. this sickening regime we have must be stopped.

[Sinistrous]

23. "Date stamps" I wonder which format these stamps are in.

If they are in the US format the weapons are planted.

If they are in the European format, these yahoos are probably misreading them.

[AzDar]

24. Not this time, assholes. Not again.

[Hydra]

25. Planted?

They don't even have to plant it- they can just say it's there, and that it's "top secret" and no photos can be provided.

I'm rather surprised they haven't done that with a nuke they "found being smuggled in to Syria"

[WHEN CRABS ROAR]

26. My, my weapons in Iraq, what a threat to the peace there.

[GreenTea]

27. Cheney wants any excuse to attack Iran on May 5th - The bullshit will just keep coming now daily!

Warring shots fired today at Iranian boat - Are we suppose to believe their lies after lies? When we know the greedy republican imperialist want those Iranian oil fields, and want another war for profit, before BushCo inc. leaves office!!

[Phred42]

28. WHY WOULD ANYONE BELEIVE ANYTHING FROM THESE GUYS AT THIS POINT?!

Ignorance is bliss, willful ignorance is an opportunity! Double Secret Reich-wing motto

.....................

[Lasher]

29. Weapons Given to Iraq Are Missing

GAO Estimates 30% of Arms Are Unaccounted For

August 6, 2007

The Pentagon has lost track of about 190,000 AK-47 assault rifles and pistols given to Iraqi security forces in 2004 and 2005, according to a new government report, raising fears that some of those weapons have fallen into the hands of insurgents fighting U.S. forces in Iraq.

The author of the report from the Government Accountability Office says U.S. military officials do not know what happened to 30 percent of the weapons the United States distributed to Iraqi forces from 2004 through early this year as part of an effort to train and equip the troops. The highest previous estimate of unaccounted-for weapons was 14,000, in a report issued last year by the inspector general for Iraq reconstruction.

<snip>

Stohl said insurgents frequently use small-arms fire to force military convoys to move in a particular direction -- often toward roadside bombs. She noted that the Bush administration frequently complains that Iran and Syria are supplying insurgents but has paid little attention to whether U.S. military errors inadvertently play a role. "We know there is seepage and very little is being done to address the problem," she said.



http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/05/AR2007080501299.html?hpid=topnews

[GreenTea]

30. Bush, military feeding Bullshit stories......

As usual, Bush/Cheney, Department of Defense, Pentagon, Corporate Military Industrial Complex war for profit republicans and media, itching to invade another sovereign nation using the same lies they used about Iraq!

[LaPera]

31. Shiite extremists, Iran-blame it on everyone else, they just want us out of their fucking country!

Can you blame them? would you like your country's resource OIL ripped-off and a foreign army creating havoc in your streets, saying it's for your own good and shoving it down their throats!

But BushCo wants that regions oil...so the lies just keep on coming!

[closeupready]

32. I don't believe this story, and I think most Americans won't either.

Period.

[Spirit of 67]

44. I don't believe it either. Although at this point I no longer have faith in the

people of the USA to figure out this b.s. Remember, these are still the same people in voted in Bush 43 for a second term.

[libodem]

33. What stupid horseshit

That's about as good as when they found one of the 9/11 hijackers' photo ID on the sidewalk outside the WTC. Who do they think they are kidding. Gannon/Guckert needs to go back to the White House and do the hosing'. They should quit trying to hose the public. We are the recipients of a major Psyops campaign.

[pinniped]

34. Tricks are for kids. The imbeciles already tried this stupid trick.

.

[fshrink]

35. And a return address.

[HuffleClaw]

36. SO WHAT?

who cares where their weapons come from?

US weapons are everywhere and that doesn't seem to be newsworthy

[ohio2007]

39. Britons kidnapped in Iraq are ‘held by Iran’

Five British hostages who were kidnapped in Iraq almost a year ago are being held inside Iran by Revolutionary Guards, according to two separate sources in the Middle East and London.

The hostages were handed over to the Revolutionary Guards by their Iraqi kidnappers last November, the sources believe. One of the sources said they were being held in the western Iranian city of Hamadan.

If confirmed, the involvement of Revolutionary Guards would be seen as evidence that senior figures in the Iranian government had backed the decision to hold them in the country.

However, British officials said that while there had been rumours that the five were in Iran, they had seen no evidence to support the idea.

snip

According to one of the sources, they are under the control of Mohammad Safaei, 41, a senior Revolutionary Guard colonel who was previously in charge of special operations in the southern Iraqi city of Basra.

The hostages were kidnapped in Baghdad last May in an attempt to force the Americans to release Qais al-Khazaali, an Iraqi militia leader said to be close to the Revolutionary Guards.

Khazaali was apparently being groomed by Iran to take control of a breakaway faction of the Mahdi Army, a Shi’ite militia, that would be compliant with Tehran.


snip
The five were abducted from the Iraqi finance ministry, where one of them, Peter Moore, a computer specialist, was teaching data-processing. The other four were his bodyguards.

The suggestion that the hostages are in Hamadan follows contradictory claims earlier this month that they were in Tehran. This is the first time it has been claimed they are in the hands of Revolutionary Guards. One of the sources has previously proved to be a reliable source of information about them.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/iraq/article3822830.ece

Wonder if one of "the students" learning data processing was an exchange student from Iran ? ANyway;

"Khazaali was apparently being groomed by Iran to take control of a breakaway faction of the Mahdi Army, a Shi’ite militia, that would be compliant with Tehran."

if al Sadr states "all Madhi army is to stop attacks on Iraqi army,police,government and civilians, is it safe to say that if attacks continue, al Sadr is saying those fighters are not under his command?

Who would they lock step with? a lieing al Sadr? or ?

[Ilsa]

40. How unoriginal. The warmongerers told us this fairytale a couple of years ago. nt

[struggle4progress]

41. What? No photos? The last time we had photos, the weapons had English stencil letters

[jasmine621]

42. Building the case for attacking Iran.

And guess what? It will work on the "stuck on stupid" (I love that phrase by J. Wright) folks. They will buy it and they far outnumber thinking people. <"stuck on stupid" = sos folks> When you see "SOS folks" in my threads you will know what it means.

[olddad56]

45. If it is true, those Iranians have a lot of gall messing with our illegal invasion...

of their neighbors on both sides. Why we outta just illegally invade them too.