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Tracking Inspections: 30 DECEMBER 2002

A total of 90 inspectors visited seven sites on 30 December. A team of eight International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors returned to the Dhat Al-Sawari State Company, which (affiliated with the Ministry of Industry and Minerals) located 20 kilometers north of Baghdad (see inspection entry for 16 December). Inspectors inquired as to the activities of the company, the number and location of its factories, number of employees, as well as technical specialties, production capacity, and changes at the site since 1998, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry reported. Inspectors also checked factories, storage facilities, raw materials, photographed raw materials and finished products, and conducted radiological testing, the ministry stated. UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) referred to the site as "Al-Sawari Est-Jihad" in its daily statement, and said that the site contains two factories: a resin and a fiberglass plant (which is currently closed). UNMOVIC added that the purpose of the inspection was to review changes made since 1998.

A group of 15 biological inspectors visited the Central Public Health Laboratory belonging to the Ministry of Health and located in Al-Andulus Square in Baghdad. Inspectors questioned a National Monitoring Directorate representative at the site on the nature of "pathological analysis and structure changes." Inspectors checked all facilities, inventoried cultures, and checked tagged equipment. UNMOVIC stated that the lab "provides primary and reference clinical laboratory services."

Another team of 14 biological inspectors went to the Ministry of Agriculture's General Directorate of Plant Production, located in Abu Gharib. Inspectors inquired as to the nature of activities at the site, the number of personnel, the nature of the plant's cooperation with outside parties, the plant's herbicide suppliers, and the number of locations for agricultural quarantines, according to the ministry. Inspectors also asked about the number of helicopters used for spraying herbicides and inspected all laboratories and departments. UNMOVIC referred to the site as "Plant Protection Division #1" of the Abu Gharib Plant, adding, "This facility is in charge of agricultural quarantine centers" and it screens imported and exported agricultural products. It also distributes pesticides.

A team of 15 chemical inspectors returned to the Al-Nida' State Company to inspect workshops and storage areas, and to ask questions about activities at the company and its production. UNMOVIC noted that Al-Nida' manufactures some dual-use equipment, including items made out of corrosion-resistant materials.

A team of 25 missile inspectors returned to the Al-Sumud site (see inspection report for 14 December) belonging to the Al-Karama State Company at Abu Gharib. The Iraqi Foreign Ministry stated, "As soon as the team arrived, its members spread quickly in an [un]precedented way on buildings, workshops, and gates that surprised the personnel and guards." In addition, the head of the team halted all movement inside the site. Inspectors photographed machinery and checked tagged equipment, inspected workshops and questioned "specialists," the ministry reported. UNMOVIC stated that the purpose of the visit was to count missile engines.

A joint team of 11 inspectors returned to the Al-Qa'qa site, which contains the Al-Mahmudiyah Water Treatment Plant, to investigate the water purification process and the "use of Choler [chlorine] as [an] antiseptic," the ministry stated.

Copyright (c) 2003. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org