No poison gas in mortar shells found in Iraq: Danish military

COPENHAGEN (AFP) Jan 14, 2004
US experts have determined that a substance leaking from three dozen mortar shells discovered in Iraq last weekend was not a poison gas, the Danish military said Wednesday.

But the general staff said in a statement that it did not rule out the fact that the liquid could be a chemical agent used in combat.

Danish troops serving in the stabilisation force near Basra in southern Iraq on Saturday found 36 rusty and leaking mortar shells likely dating back to the 1980-1988 Iraq-Iran war.

"It's a relief to know that the mortars do not constitute a threat to the security of the local population and the environment in the region," the general staff said.

It added that the US team of the Iraq survey group, which is trying to find evidence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq had asked a laboratory in the United States to verify its findings.

The results of those tests would be ready in three to five days, it said in a statement.

WAR.WIRE