BBC newsnight reports on high degree of sophistication of Iraqi sabotage

[indictrichardperle]

They had an energy specialist on, who described the oil pipeline blast as "someone who really knows what they are doing, not a regular attack". He stated that they blew up the main valve for the pipe-line along with the segment of the pipe-line, so that the pipe-line could not be shut down, and the fire could not be put out. The BBC then showed a diagram of all the oil pipe-line blasts........there were ALOT of them.

(the BBC newsnight program is at a level of professionalism, maturity and intellect........that you will never see in this country, sad)

[NYC]

1. A lot of explosions?

Do you have any more information? I assume this was on television.

[indictrichardperle]

2. yes it was just on television

The diagram of all pipe-line blasts were since june i believe, not all in the last 24 hours, still there were a hell of alot of blasts. Up and down the main lines going north.

The sabotage was obviously done by someone who knows Iraqi oil industry well, not "outsiders", possibly special forces or ex-oil industry people. I suspect the Kurds may also be suspect, as Turkey is set to send 10,000 troops to Iraq.

[alcuno]

4. I don't think it's special forces or ex-oil industry people.

It's guerrilla warfare and not hard to find experts on oil pipelines in the Middle East. The US crows about the pipeline to Turkey and it gets blown up. Bremer crows about the opening of the Baghdad Museum and, within hours, a soldier is killed right out in front. I think they're watching FAUX to see what the Americans are crowing about.

[alcuno]

3. FAUX News tells me that everything is FINE in Iraq!

But the smoke they showed billowing out of the pipeline belies that assertion. I think that BBC was talking about all the pipeline blasts in the past three months.

[ewagner]

6. Think that's bad

...should have seen Paula Zahn lob softballs at Bremer tonight.

...also caught just a short bit of Buchanan and Press when some jerk Rep congressman just returning from Iraq told them that in Iraq he saw children higging soldiers and successess on the ground that no one reports over here. The dead give-away- in his little pep rally was when he described the ambushes as being perpetrated by "deadenders" of the old Ba'ath Regime and Saddam loyalists. That' pure Rumsfeld speak.!

[Gloria]

5. Is CSpan showing Newsnight every night??? I've picked it up for

a couple of nights when I finish dinner, just as I begin counting down for Mike Malloy....

[The_Casual_Observer]

7. This is just the sort of thing that keeps it interesting

Watching how these stories evolve, grow and get worse as the facts become known (these stories ALWAYS get worse). If it weren't so tragic and real it would be pure entertainment.