[QUOTE]
*Originally posted by Chaltahai: *
Mr. Fraudiya yaar...I understood what he said. Stop being a jackass, I was just giving him a hardtime, becuase I haven't seen a post of his in a while. Damn!
[/QUOTE]
errr u dinn understand what i meant. I meant quit speculating since "he" just called the speculations off. quit being a jackass. I was giving him a hard time for calling speculations off. Damn!
Yemen did order them as they say, and they have gotten scuds from N. Korea before in 1999/2000
But I don't know what's up with the whole cover up though..
It was reported this morning that Yemen had agreed to America's request not to buy weapons from N. Korea. Maybe that's the reason for the cover-up. Nonetheless, IMO they are entitled to having the missles.
Yemen claims North Korean weapons shipment, sends protest letter to Washington over interception
The missiles and other sophisticated military equipment found on a North Korean ship off the tip of the Arabian peninsula belong to the Yemeni government, it was confirmed Wednesday.
Yemen and North Korea completed a deal for the equipment several months ago, reports said. Yemeni officials said they wanted the equipment delivered.
Yemen's foreign minister, Abu Bakr Al Querbi met on Wednesday the US ambassador to Sana'a, Edmond Hull. During the meeting, the minister handed a protest letter to the U.S. government about the interception of the ship, Yemen news agency reported.
The letter confirmed that the cargo was part of contracts concluded with North Korea a few months ago. "The cargo belongs the Yemeni government and its armed forces for defense purposes, and it will not reach a third party," the letter reads.
The Yemeni government noted that "Yemen has no hostile intentions against any one, and its possession of these weapons will not cause harm to the international peace and security." The Yemeni foreign minister handed a similar letter to the Spanish government protesting over the interception of the weapons cargo. (Albawaba.com)
Interesting way for Yemeni govt to buy missiles!
Good thing is that these missiles have a probability of hitting anywhere within a 1 kilometer range of their intended target. If they hit something worthwhile, the shooters should have a party.
Faisal,
Good point, these things are the ultimate collateral damage weapons when armed with conventional warheads, and obviously capable of carrying WMD. Funny I don't hear any outrage at their purchase and use!? A little double standard here when the expectation is that the US must hit every target every time, but the odds of these things hitting any military targets are about the same as winning the lottery.
And, loading them under 40,000 bags of cement does not tend to indicate they are particularly proud of the purchase.
I don't think Yemen is planning to fire these in a hurry. They probably just like to collect antiques. :)
Hence no outrage. All countries collect weapons all the time. It wouldn't have been a biggie, if Yemeni govt. hadn't allegedly promised USA not to buy from NK.
Faisal:
Let this thread be a lesson for you. If you have to choose between Reuters and CNN for accuracy of news, always go with Reuters. Thanks for the geography lesson though. :)
And now the shipment is released and the Yemenis will get their 15 Scud missiles, 15 conventional warheads, 23 tanks of nitric acid rocket propellant and 85 drums of unidentified chemicals. From the White House we get this comment: “There is no provision under international law prohibiting Yemen from accepting delivery of missiles from North Korea.” Still, someone must have believed they were doing SOMETHING wrong. Why else try to conceal its N. Korean origin by painting over its original name, falsely sailing under a Cambodian flag, dummying up the registry papers and manifest and hiding the cargo? Why not just send the stuff via Fed X openly?
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtmltype=worldNews&storyID=1890704
Dude,
Is it my fault that your links never work? 
In any case, you/Reuters were jumping the gun for some masala news. Turns out it was a dud in the end.
Now you can ponder over all of these life’s wonderful questions e.g. Why else try to conceal its N. Korean origin by painting over its original name, falsely sailing under a Cambodian flag, dummying up the registry papers and manifest and hiding the cargo? Why not just send the stuff via Fed X openly? 