Iraq Notebook
Inspectors: Scrap metal taken out of country

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The scrap exports also included equipment that could be used to produce weapons of mass destruction, said the report, which was to be presented to the U.N. Security Council today.

The report says export of the materials was handled by the Iraqi Ministry of Trade, which was under the direct supervision of U.S. occupation authorities until June 28, when the Americans handed power to Iraq's interim government.

The report criticized "the systematic removal" of items subject to U.N. monitoring from a number of sites.

The U.N. inspectors, who are barred from Iraq, said commercial satellite photos show that several important sites once used to manufacture missiles and precursors for chemical weapons have been destroyed or cleaned out.

The study includes a lengthy analysis by the inspectors on the range and weapons-carrying capabilities of Iraq's pilotless drone aircraft — a subject of intense debate before last year's U.S.-led invasion of Iraq which was revived again this year.

The Bush administration cited the threat posed by the remotely piloted vehicles in making its case to invade Iraq. But the inspectors reported that their lengthy analysis found no evidence that Iraq's drones could disperse chemical or biological weapons or travel beyond a 92-mile limit, imposed on Iraq after the first Gulf War in 1991.

The report by the U.N. Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission, known as UNMOVIC, cautioned, however, that it did not have access to information from U.S. inspectors in the Iraq Survey Group who are still in the country and expected to produce a major report later this month. Their chief, Charles Duelfer, told Congress on March 30 that one of Iraq's drones went far beyond that limit.

British soldier first charged with murder

LONDON — British authorities for the first time charged a soldier with murder in the death of a civilian in Iraq, indicting the man yesterday in a civilian court after his commanding officer blocked a court martial.

Trooper Kevin Williams, who served in Iraq with the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment, was charged in the death of Iraqi civilian Hassan Said, who was killed in Ad Dayr near Basra in southern Iraq on Aug. 3, 2003.
 
Army may break up Halliburton contract

HOUSTON — The Army is considering breaking up Halliburton Co.'s massive logistics contract and offering it up for bids, Army officials said yesterday.

A spokeswoman at the Pentagon said Halliburton would be allowed to bid if the contract were canceled, but the Houston-based oil services conglomerate's chief executive said the company might not join the bidders.

Halliburton CEO Dave Lesar told analysts at a New York energy conference yesterday that whether the company bids would depend on how many pieces emerged from the contract separation, Halliburton spokeswoman Wendy Hall said.

The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday the Army plans to break up the contract, valued as high as $13 billion, and dole out the work to more companies. The Pentagon spokeswoman said the goal of pulling the contract was not to punish Halliburton but to allow competitive bidding and ultimately save money.