WASHINGTON, D.C., Sept. 20, 2007
Are Lost U.S. Weapons In Enemy Hands?
Investigation Shows Missing U.S. Weapons May Have Turned Up In The Hands Of Iraqi Insurgents
-
Play CBS Video Video Taxpayers Funding Insurgency
According to an intelligence source, a shipment of artillery, intended for U.S.-backed forces in Iraq, was lost. As Armen Keteyian reports, those weapons have been found, in the hands of the enemy.
-
According to an intelligence source, the U.S. contractor in charge of the Glocks somehow lost track of an entire shipment. (CBS)
-
Blog Primary Source Armen Keteyian and his investigative team keep you informed daily on their blog.
-
Interactive Battle For Iraq The government, the insurgency, key players, background and photos.
Thursday, Pentagon officials said $88 billion in spending in Iraq and Afghanistan is now under audit by the Department of Defense for fraud.
Now, in his exclusive report CBS News chief investigative correspondent Armen Keteyian has learned some of those missing weapons have ended up in the worst possible hands.
CBS News has learned that the CIA has photographic evidence that Austrian-made Glocks intended for Iraqi security forces and paid for by U.S. taxpayers are now in the hands of Iraqi insurgents -- in numbers that the intelligence community believes are in the thousands.
According to an intelligence source, the U.S. contractor in charge of the Glocks somehow lost track of an entire shipment. That mysterious disappeance is now part of a massive military bribery investigation centered around a contracting office run out of a small trailer at a military base in Kuwait. Eighteen federal investigators are digging into the actions of dozens of high-ranking U.S officers and military contractors.
Thursday, at a House Armed Services Committee hearing, lawmakers took aim at what the chairman called "a culture of corruption" surrounding billions in Iraq war contracts, but stopped short of publicly saying where some of the weapons wound up.
"The number of folks who have enormous responsibilty to this country are involved has, I think, made this a real tragedy for our country,” says Duncan Hunter, the committee's ranking member.
After the hearing, Keteyian confronted Army Lt. General Ross Thompson, who admitted the Inspector General at the Defense of Department is looking at the CIA's evidence.
“We are going to report tonight that thousands of Glock pistols intended for Iraq security forces instead ended up in the hands of insurgents,” says Keteyian. “What is your reaction to that?"
“I don't know that for a fact,” Thompson says. “It is something that is being investigated by the DOD IG right now and that's something that is not within my responsibility or my area of expertise to comment on, but it is being actively investigated.”
As Congress prepares to send another $2 billion to the Iraq security forces, Dept. of Defense officials testified they are working to find better ways to maintain appropriate accountability and control over military material.
It’s small comfort to American soldiers in Iraq who may now be staring down the barrel of guns paid for by the U.S. government.
© MMVII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Michelle Obama tells how her role as the First Lady has changed her perspective.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- next
See all 79 Comments"Brigadier General Karl Horst, deputy commander of the 3rd Infantry Division said of private security contractors, %u201CThese guys run loose in this country and do stupid stuff. There%u2019s no authority over them, so you can%u2019t come down on them hard when they escalate force%u2026. They shoot people, and someone else has to deal with the aftermath. It happens all over the place.%u201D Horst tracked contractor conduct for a two month period in Baghdad and documented at least a dozen shootings of Iraqi civilians by contractors, resulting in six Iraqi deaths and the wounding of three others. That is just one General in one area of Iraq in just 60 days."
Those were his first TWO LIES to the nation.
He is not compassionate, as he spends $500 Billion on a needless horrific war based on Lies, gives hundreds of billions in massive tax cuts to the filthy rich, then says $7 Billion per year to help poorer kids get health insurance either costs too much or would take profits away from mega-insurance-corporations (God forbid!)
He is NOT Conservative. Ron Paul is Conservative. Conservatives do not double the national debt to NINE TRILLION Dollars. Conservatives do not go on radical reckless Invasions, Hitler style (you know, based on LIES, FEAR, hyped fake-patriotic fervor, co-opted media that is nothgin more that flag-waving cheerleaders...)
Whoever is responsible needs to go to jail!
Posted by USnotUN at 08:07 PM : Sep 22, 2007
The Shrub !!!
Next time one of our politicians starts spouting off about "gun control", remind him or her about the foolishness of letting government control something as potentially dangerous as firearms.
Hopefully, somebody is going to jail. I''m tired of hearing some crooked politicians tell us that he takes responsibility, and that''s it. Whoever is responsible needs to go to jail!
www.conservativemusiconline.com
My music slaps The Left
Posted by conserva at 04:13 PM : Sep 22, 2007
+ report abuse
You pathetic Fascist, the CHAIRMAN of the committee investigating the missing weapons is a Democrat... if it were left to the fascist there would be no investigation. Now overlooking your stupid LIE about the weapons from Iran what do you say about OUR OWN Government arming the insurgency? No don''t bother, your to fascist to have an answer... sieg heil bush!!
Haliburton planned this war for years so that your tax money would go directly into its pockets.
Source: http://www.4iam.info/Manifesto/lxxii.htm
I know how it is . . . Sometimes one of these guys says something so idiotic you just have to point out the error of their ways. I just wish he''d actually listen and internalize what you said! :)
Posted by socrates392
Yeah, I do understand that. I reported him for it earlier today, but his statement in this ''ad'' just really got me.
My music slaps The Left"
Yeah, that''s why you are the only one promoting it, ''cause it''s sooo good! You have a real future, no really, keep at it, I''m serious.
Yeah, what you don''t understand is our friend conserva only makes posts here to sell his stupid music cd, which he is tooo stingy to advertise legally. I''m sure he thinks all "A-rabs" are the same!
Posted by conserva
Why in the name of Allah would IRAN who is SHIA give arms to Al Qaeda who is SUNNI?? Makes no sense!
I AM INVOLVED POLITICALLY AND I UNDERSTAND THE PROBLEMS, SO YOU BETTER LISTEN, THINK AND MAKE WISER CHOICES. OH, BY THE WAY, AN APOLOGY TO OUR ANCESTORS IS VERY NECESSARY AS THEY DESERVE THE ADULATION, WHERE AS, PRESENT DAY POLITICIANS DESERVE NOTHING BUT CRITICISM! PLEASE TAKE A LONG HARD LOOK WITHIN YOURSELF, YOUR PRIORITIES AND THE FUTURE OF YOUR DESCENDANTS. MAYBE NOW YOU WILL THINK DIFFERENT! THANK YOU TO THOSE WHO UNDERSTAND AND WHO ARE NOT MYRMIDONS!
There should be a basic skill test to log on here. I''m not saying this to weed out the dumb, I''m saying this to weed out the drooling idiots.
Bush might go down as the greatest president in history, the greatest F**Kup that is. Its not beyond the realm of possiblity that Chimp might trigger WW-III. Everyone is standing with their thumbs up their respective behinds waiting for this to happen.
Turns out, the sc-um is more interested in making money than in serving their evil masters. The Blackwater thought process goes like this: "Who cares who gets the guns? As long as there are lots of guns, there will be lots of killing, and we have permanent job security, plus the cash from selling the guns! It''s a win-win situation!"
By selling guns to "the enemy", Blackwater has become "the enemy". They should all be sent to Guantanamo.
They would do us a lot more good if they just hung themselves.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- next
See all 79 Comments