Clinton's missile forays were nothing more than show for the consumption
of the dumb public. The action in the Oval Office closet was far more
substantive:
"The key piece of physical evidence linking the al-Shifa facility to
production of chemical weapons was the discovery of EMPTA in a soil
sample taken from the plant during a CIA clandestine operation. EMPTA,
or O-Ethyl methylphosphonothioic acid, is classified as a Schedule 2B
compound according to the Chemical Weapons Convention and is a VX
precursor.[3] Although several theoretical uses for EMPTA were
postulated as well as several patented processes using EMPTA, such as
the manufacture of plastic, no known industrial uses of EMPTA were ever
documented nor any products that contained EMPTA. It is, however, not
banned by the Chemical Weapons Convention as originally claimed by the
US government. Moreover, it does not necessarily follow from the
presence of EMPTA near (but outside) the boundary of Al-Shifa that this
was produced in the factory: EMPTA could have been "stored in or
transported near al-Shifa, instead of being produced by it", according
to a report by Michael Barletta.[4]
Under-Secretary of State Thomas Pickering claimed to have sufficient
evidence against Sudan, including contacts between officials at Al-Shifa
plant and Iraqi chemical weapons experts, with the Iraq chemical weapons
program the only one identified with using EMPTA for VX production. The
National Democratic Alliance (NDA), a Sudanese opposition in Cairo led
by Mubarak Al-Mahdi, also insisted that the plant was producing
ingredients for chemical weapons.[5] Former Clinton administration
counter terrorism advisor Richard Clarke and former national security
advisor Sandy Berger also noted the facilities alleged ties with the
former Iraqi government. Clarke also cited Iraq's $199,000 contract with
al Shifa for veterinary medicine under the UN's Oil for Food Program.
David Kay, a former UN weapons inspector also said that Iraq may have
assisted in the construction of the Al-Shifa plant, noting that Sudan
would be unlikely to have the technical knowledge to produce VX.[6]
Officials later acknowledged, however, "that the evidence that prompted
President Clinton to order the missile strike on the Shifa plant was not
as solid as first portrayed. Indeed, officials later said that there was
no proof that the plant had been manufacturing or storing nerve gas, as
initially suspected by the Americans, or had been linked to Osama bin
Laden, who was a resident of Khartoum in the 1980s."[7] . . .
Sudan has since invited the U.S. to conduct chemical tests at the site
for evidence to support its claim that the plant might have been a
chemical weapons factory; so far, the U.S. has refused the invitation to
investigate. Nevertheless, the U.S. has refused to officially apologize
for the attacks, suggesting that some privately still suspect that
chemical weapons activity existed there.[7]
The Khartoum attack was noted for its outstanding precision, as
successive missiles all but leveled the Al-Shifa works with minimal
damage to surrounding areas, although one person was killed and ten
wounded in the attack.
Directly after the strike the Sudanese government demanded that the
Security Council conduct an investigation of the site to determine if it
had been used to produce chemical weapons or precursors. Such an
investigation was from the start opposed by the US. Nor has USA ever let
an independent laboratory analyze the sample allegedly containing EMPTA.
Michael Barletta concludes that there is no evidence the al-Shifa
factory was ever involved in production of chemical weapons, and it is
known that many of the initial US allegations were wrong.[4]"
And this was the toll from the 74 Cruise missiles sent to four Afghan camps:
"According to Pakistani journalist Ahmed Rashid, 20 Afghans, seven
Pakistanis, three Yemenis, two Egyptians, one Saudi and one Turk were
killed.[9] Abu Jandal later estimated that only six men had been killed
in the strikes.[1] The only confirmed death in the strikes was
Egyptian-Canadian Amr Hamed. Osama bin Laden jokingly told militants at
the al-Jihad merger that only a few camels and chickens had died.[16]"