Running out of stuff to complain about,

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Almost all of the priceless items feared stolen from the Baghdad Museum when it was ransacked by looters have been found safe in a secret vault, the U.S.-led administration for Iraq (news - web sites) said on Saturday.

A special team of U.S. investigators working at the museum to check the extent of the looting has concluded that around 3,000 items were still lost or stolen, compared with initial estimates of up to 170,000. Most of the missing items were used for research, rather than exhibition.


"Earlier this week, 179 boxes that contained the vast majority of the museum's exhibition collection were discovered safe in a secret vault," the administration said in a statement.


"The discovery of these boxes containing nearly 8,000 of the most important items from the museum's collection means that the work of the investigation team is drawing to a close."


The failure of U.S. forces to prevent Baghdad Museum being plundered sparked a storm of protest around the world in April. The U.S. military said its men were initially too busy fighting in the streets around the museum to halt the looting.


But many of the items feared lost have been discovered. Some were taken home by staff for safekeeping, and others were found hidden elsewhere, including the large haul in a secret vault. Staff initially refused to reveal the location of the vault until U.S. troops had left Iraq, but later relented.


TREASURE OF NIMRUD


Another trove of priceless jewelry, the Treasure of Nimrud, was found in a flooded Central Bank vault on Thursday.


The Nimrud artefacts, hundreds of gold and gem-studded pieces from the ancient kingdom of Assyria, were retrieved by U.S. investigators after the vaults below the gutted shell of the looted bank building were drained.


The treasures, discovered between 1988 and 1990 in ancient royal tombs below an Assyrian palace dating from the ninth century BC, had been feared lost. But U.S. investigators learned they had been placed in a central bank vault in the early 1990s, possibly to protect them during the 1991 Gulf War (news - web sites).


"They were never lost," acting Central Bank Governor Faleh Salman said. "We knew all along they were there. It just took a bit of time to get at them because of the flooding."


U.S. customs agents who helped with the recovery of the treasure said that when they first entered the vaults they found bodies of looters killed in shootouts with rival gangs. But the seals on the crates of treasure were intact.


The U.S.-led administration said the Nimrud treasure seemed to be in good condition. A team of experts from the British Museum would arrive soon to assess conservation needs.


The customs agents said it was not known how the vaults came to be flooded, but they suspect Iraqis deliberately let water in to stop looters -- or members of Saddam Hussein (news - web sites)'s inner circle -- making off with the money and valuables inside.


Despite the recovery of many of the museum's treasures in the last week, the U.S.-led administration said 47 items from the main exhibition -- the museum's most treasured pieces -- had not been found.

Cool, now maybe they can find a weapon or two eventually. Or have they given up?

Cool, now maybe they can find a weapon or two eventually. Or have they given up?

Ok assuming he used all of his chem/bio weapons, that is even more reason to do something about it because he still had the means to make more as made apperant with the discovery of mobile weapons labs etc.

Janothhhh wrote:

Ok assuming he used all of his chem/bio weapons, that is even more reason to do something about it because he still had the means to make more as made apperant with the discovery of mobile weapons labs etc.

Well you see, I never argued that Saddam was harmless... it was just extremely upsetting to see our administration lie (and poorly) about the reasons for heading into Iraq. We were never there to free him of his WoMD, we were there to take over. Not indefinately, but we'll be there for years anyways.

I have a problem with that and I guess I always will. Call a spade a spade, you know?

The point is that Bush and Blair & Co. pressed a war against Iraq that was not universally advocated under the reasoning that there were immeadiate weapons threats posed to the United States basically.

No concrete proof has been found, and there have been serious allegations and questioning of the real proof that we had regarding the so called 'weapons'.

I'd really like to believe Bush when I see him telling us for the first, second, third, fourth, etc. times that there are weapons and that 'proof is forthcoming'. Problem is that, he has been saying the same thing for a long time, and I haven't seen it backed up.

It's not like it really bothers me, Saddam was bad, it's good to have him gone, it is however a matter of principle.. we went to war.. overthrew a government.. for a specific reason 'on the record'. This reason has not been proven to a degree yet.

However, it isn't just the one issue of weapons, the other things like Ashcroft coming under fire for his treatment of detainees, the validity of the information Colin Powell presented to the UN, etc are also being questioned. Ashcroft is worse then Bush in many ways. Can't wait for him to get the hell outta there. Powell probably was forced to present that information regardless of his own views in the matter.

Anyways.. time will tell.. but I personally think Bush just wanted to get Saddam out and took us for a ride, and will try to cloak himself in the righteousness that he believes is his by 'freeing' the Iraqi people.

I'd really like to believe Bush when I see him telling us for the first, second, third, fourth, etc. times that there are weapons and that 'proof is forthcoming'. Problem is that, he has been saying the same thing for a long time, and I haven't seen it backed up.

Anyways.. time will tell.. but I personally think Bush just wanted to get Saddam out and took us for a ride, and will try to cloak himself in the righteousness that he believes is his by 'freeing' the Iraqi people.