WMD Commission Warns Of Bioterrorism Threat

A bipartisan commission created by Congress is reporting today that the Obama administration needs to pay more attention to the urgent and immediate threat of biological terrorism.

The United States is failing to address the threat of bioterrorism, according to leaders of a bipartisan panel that warns that an attack worldwide is more likely than not by the end of 2013.

The Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism, created by Congress in 2007, said in an interim report Wednesday that the administration and lawmakers have underfunded efforts to develop vaccines and drugs and have not named a high-level National Security Council appointee to improve biodefenses.

“The clock is ticking,” said former senator Bob Graham (D-Fla.), the commission’s chairman.

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Biological Attack More Likely Than Nuclear – Congressional Panel

Two U.S. senators are citing a report by a bipartisan panel that warns of the threat of a terrorist attack with weapons of mass destruction. Senators Joseph Lieberman and Susan Collins say a biological attack is more likely than a nuclear or chemical attack, and are pushing new legislation to boost the country’s readiness for such a strike.

Senator Joseph Lieberman is an Independent Democrat from Connecticut, and is chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. He commented on the sober conclusions of a congressionally-mandated commission created to study changes to national security policy in the wake of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States.

“A WMD attack is probable somewhere in the world in the next four years, and it is more likely to be biological than nuclear,” he said.

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Chertoff Points To Possibilities Of Biological Attack

Former Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff says the biggest threat from terrorists may come in the form of biological weapons.

In an interview segment aired Thursday on the FederalNewsRadio program Homeland Security: Inside and Out, the ex-DHS head said concerns about the possibility of a biological attack should outweigh fears of an attack using a nuclear weapon, chemical agents or conventional explosives.

“The natural ingredients of a biological threat are not difficult to come by, and it’s just a question of the know-how in terms of fabricating them to make a weapon,” said Chertoff.

While he did not dispute the idea that a nuclear attack would have the most far-reaching and devastating consequences, the likelihood of terrorists getting a nuclear bomb is “very remote at this point,” Chertoff said.

The former Homeland Security chief told program co-host Dave McIntyre that, far from being a theoretical possibility, a biological attack has already occurred in the United States. “Only someone who has a very short memory and doesn’t recall what happened in the fall of 2001, when we had an anthrax attack, albeit one on a small scale, can say it hasn’t happened,” Chertoff said.

And – while terrorists would have to go to some lengths to obtain nuclear material – anthrax and plague are naturally occuring and thus far more readily available for nefarious use, according to Chertoff.

The former DHS head said he believes the U.S. has already done much to implement biohazard detection. “We also need the capability to distribute detection equipment much more widely and much less expensively,” Chertoff added.

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Container Carrying Swine Flu Virus Explodes On Swiss Train

A container for transporting swine flu virus samples exploded on a Swiss train, authorities said Tuesday, but stressed that there was no danger to the public.

The container, which was filled with dry ice and carried samples of the H1N1 swine flu virus and was destined for Switzerland’s national influenza centre in Geneva, exploded Monday night on board a train.

A laboratory employee had picked up the samples in Zurich to transport them by train to Geneva, but the package exploded near Fribourg and Lausanne, after melting dry ice, which had been wrongly placed, caused a build-up of pressure.

Two people suffered slight injuries, police confirmed, but authorities stressed there was no danger for the public as the virus was not the mutated strain which is suspected to have caused up to 149 deaths in Mexico.

The train was halted for several hours and the 61 passengers on board the affected carriage monitored until an infection could be completely ruled out, police said.

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Canada Sends Chemical, Biological Suits to Philippines

The Canadian government has shipped chemical and biological defense equipment to the Philippines and will soon send personnel to that nation to train special forces and other units in its use.

Canadian officials donated the 300 protective suits to senior military representatives in Manila several weeks ago and an agreement signed by the two countries notes that Canadian personnel will train Filipino troops in the use of the chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear defence equipment.

Additional chemical, biological and nuclear defence gear is expected to be coming from Canada shortly, according to Filipino officials.
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Neither Foreign Affairs nor the Defence Department responded to a Citizen request made last week for comment about the donation. A spokesperson from the Ottawa-based Defence Research and Development Canada, which has been involved in training Filipino personnel on such gear in the past, said the agency could not yet confirm whether it is involved in this latest training event.

Filipino Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro accepted the equipment after signing a memorandum of understanding with Robert Desjardins, Canada’s Ambassador to the Philippines.

“We were very pleased to be involved with extensive training of people from the Armed Forces (of the Philippines), from the police, from the health services, from the fire services in chemical biological, radiological and incident response and we will continue to work with you with a view to continue the fabulous work that has been done so far,” Mr. Desjardins told Filipino journalists at the event.

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