Wednesday, 5 November 2014

Chemical &  BioWeapons Review @ 2014


In Part I: Preface & Introduction

Preface

Why This Article?; and Why Now?

I was very fortunate to be born at a time of peace and in an era of hope for the world. All of these lights have gradually dimmed and we are entering into an era of considerably more uncertainty than ever before in the past 70 years.
What if Edward Snowden, for example, had been a scientist, a biogeneticist or bioengineer and had released the gene sequencing for every bioweapon known to mankind – and more – to Al Qaeda or, even worse, to a hitherto as yet unknown radical group somewhere in the world ? What if something similar has already happened but we have not been informed or the authorities are unaware? The argument might be that with such knowledge available to all we are all much safer - mutually assured destruction (MAD) it was called - a byword for an era past.
But are we? I am working on the assumption that we would not all be safer but maybe quite the opposite.
I do not have any solutions to any political issues in the world. For those things you must look to your political representatives.
What I do have is information which might enable you to think about how, in the event of an unexpected crisis, you can act to save what is precious to you – your community, your civil society, your family and friends, or just yourself. While this article is primarily geared towards those working together in the advent of a major bioterrorist attack it is by no means critical of anyone who would choose to save solely himself or just that of his or her immediate family and have their own 'contingency' plan, independent of the authorities.
Before I was born, my mother was training as a nurse. I think if I had not been born she would have stayed in some caring profession all of her life.
Beyond paying all the bills (and there were many) money was never the object of her working life. It is with my Mom Norah (and my aunt Mary) in mind and in memory that I have written this particular article.



I have drawn on the literature and expertise of numerous sources, both named and unattributable, as their input was invaluable for the research of this article. You should therefore, in the first instance, refer to those first-hand experts, rather than to myself.   All these specialists you will find in the Reference section following the article. Thanks to all those mentioned who have contributed.





Introduction

Some Definitions20:
The following three descriptions, Toxin, Mass Casualty Biological (toxin) Weapon and Militarily Significant Weapon
1. A Toxin is any toxic substance that can be produced by an animal, plant or microbe. Some toxins can also be produced by molecular biologic techniques (protein toxins) or by chemical synthesis
(low molecular weight toxins).
Chemical agents, such as soman, sarin VX, cyanide and mustard agents, typically man-made for weaponization.
2. A Mass Casualty Biological (toxin) Weapon (MCBW) is any toxin weapon capable of causing death or disease on a large scale, such that
the military or civilian infrastructure of the state or organization being attacked is overwhelmed. (Note: The commonly accepted term for this category of weapons is ”Weapons of Mass Destruction,” although that term brings to mind destroyed cities, bomb craters and great loss of life; MCBWs might cause loss of life only. I do not anticipate that
MCBW” will replace the term “Weapon of Mass Destruction” in common usage, but it is technically more descriptive of toxin weapons).

3. A Militarily Significant (or Terrorist) Weapon is any weapon capable of affecting directly or indirectly, physically or through psychological impact the outcome of a military operation.







Comparison of Chemical Agents and Toxins20

     Toxins                                            Chemical Agents

Natural Origin                                 Man-made, large Scale, industrial production
difficult, small-scale

Non-volatile- many are 
more toxic                                     Many volatile-but also many less toxic than toxins

        
Non-Dermally Active                         Dermally Active

Ordorless & Tasteless                      Noticeable Odor or Taste



              Part II: What Exactly Are Biological Weapons?
                         What Are Biological Weapons?

''According to an unclassified report of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, Chemical and Biological Terrorism: The Threat According to the Open Literature (en français, La Menace de Terrorisme Biologique ou Chimique Selon Les Sources Publiées): Biological warfare agents include both living microorganisms (bacteria, protozoa, rickettsia, viruses, and fungi), and toxins (chemicals) produced by microorganisms, plants, or animals. (Some authors classify toxins as chemical rather than biological agents, but most do not, and they were included within the 1972 Biological Weapons Convention-as reflected in its formal title, the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on Their Destruction). Writers on the subject have produced a long list of BW agents that terrorists could potentially use. Among those mentioned have been: anthrax, cryptococcosis, escherichia coli, haemophilus influenzae, brucellosis (undulant fever), coccidioidomycosis (San Joaquin Valley or desert fever), psittacosis (parrot fever), yersina pestis (the Black Death of the 14th Century), tularemia (rabbit fever), malaria, cholera, typhoid, bubonic plague, cobra venom, shellfish toxin, botulinal toxin, saxitoxin, ricin, smallpox, shigella flexneri, s. dysenteriae (Shiga bacillus), salmonella, staphylococcus enterotoxin B, hemorrhagic fever, Venezuelan
equine encephalitis, histoplasma capsulatum, pneumonic plague, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, dengue fever, Rift Valley fever, diphtheria, melioidosis, glanders, tuberculosis, infectious hepatitis, encephalitides, blastomycosis, nocardiosis, yellow fever, typhus, tricothecene mycotoxin, aflatoxin, and Q fever. Some of these agents are highly lethal; others would serve mainly in an incapacitating role. Some authors have also speculated about the possible terrorist use of new, genetically-engineered agents designed to defeat conventional methods of treatment or to attack specific ethnic groups, for example.''8


         Part III: The History of Biological Weapons Since Prehistory

History of the Use of Biological Weapons In Terrorism Since (Possibly) Prehistoric Times

Prehistoric (?) Possibly the use of poison plants, berries, nettles, feces infused onto spears, wooden weapons, maybe even thrown at enemies as (infused) poisonous sharp rocks to cause abrasions and lacerations known at that time to inflict considerable pain and maybe even death. [P.E.}

6th Century BC -- Assyrians poisoned enemy wells with rye ergot1 (Part II)

6th Century BC -- Solon of Athens used the purgative herb hellebore (skunk cabbage) to
poison the water supply during the siege of Krissa2 (Part II)

429 BC - The Great Peloponnessian War – Theban (Spartan) forces at the siege of Plataea attempted to burn the entire town down, poison-asphyxiate and disfigure it's inhabitants using wood soaked in a mixture of sulphur and pitch (as both a fuel and oxidizer-similar to Napalm) with the hope that the wind direction and current would do the rest. Fortunately for the Plataeans heavy rain and thunder intervened and the town did not burn down10.
If you want to know the final outcome of The Great Peloponnesian War [431-404 BC] read the references.

''During the battle of Tortona in the 12th century AD, Barbarossa used the bodies of dead and decomposing soldiers to poison wells. 

1346 AD During the siege of Kaffa in the 14th century AD, plague broke out in the Tartar army during its siege of Kaffa (at present day Feodosiys in Crimea). The attackers hurled the plague-infected corpses  of those who died over the city walls to cause epidemic within the enemy forces; the plague epidemic that followed forced the defenders to surrender, and some infected people who left Kaffa may have started the Black Death pandemic which spread
throughout Europe.3(Part II)


Russian troops may have used the same tactic against Sweden in 1710. when the Russians besieging Swedish forces at Reval in Estonia, catapulted bodies of people who had died from plague. 11

1797 -- Napoleon attempted to infect the inhabitants of the besieged city of Mantua with
swamp fever during his Italian campaign.

1915 -- ...the case, dating back to 1915, of German-American physician Dr. Anton Dilger, who established a small biological agent production facility at his northwest Washington, DC home. Using cultures of Bacillus Anthracis (Anthrax) and Pseudomonas Mallei (Glanders) supplied by the Imperial German government, Dilger produced an estimated liter or more of liquid agent. Reportedly, the agent and a simple inoculation device were given to a group of dock workers in Baltimore who used them to infect a reported 3000 head of horses, mules and cattle destined for the Allied forces in Europe. Allegedly, several hundred military personnel were also affected.
There is also evidence that during World War I, German agents inoculated horses and cattle with glanders in the U.S. before the animals were shipped to France.

1915 (December) : The German Nobel Prize Winner Fritz Harber formulates a plan to release Phosgene into the trenches at Ypres. Much more deadly than his earlier conceived Chlorine 'bombs' because of it's inflammatory effects on the respiratory tract causing death by asphyxiation.

Soon afterwards, all combatants were using chemical weapons in The First World War.

The devastating aftermath of the usage of phosgene, mustard and chlorine, the disfigurement, blinding crippling and general blight it brought on the lives of those surviving and their carers brought a reality check to the politicians - and probably guaranteed their limited use by German Nazi Forces (on the Eastern Front and in Concentration Camps) during the Second World War.


1921 (Morocco, North Africa):Spain uses Chemical Weapons in the Riffian Berber Rebellion12
[Because Morocco remains a totalitarian regime, few children even today know their history as well as Europeans do (sic. about Morocco) and are therefore unable to place these actions into any coherent historical framework.]

1931 -- in July 1994 Prince Mikasa of Japan revealed that Japanese military officials had attempted to poison members of the League of Nations' Lytton Commission assigned to investigate Japan's seizure of Manchuria in 1931, by lacing fruit with cholera germs, but that "the investigators did not develop the disease"

In 1937, Japan started an ambitious biological warfare program, located 40 miles south of Harbin, Manchuria, in a laboratory complex code-named “Unit 731”. Studies directed by Japanese General Ishii continued there until 1945, when the complex was burned. A post World War II investigation revealed that the Japanese researched numerous organisms and used prisoners of war as research subjects. Slightly less than 1,000 human autopsies apparently were carried out at Unit 731, mostly on victims exposed to aerosolized anthrax. Many more prisoners and Chinese nationals may have died in this facility - some have estimated up to 3,000 human deaths. Following reported overflights by Japanese planes suspected of dropping plague-infected fleas, a plague epidemic ensued in China and Manchuria. By 1945, the Japanese program had stockpiled 400 kilograms of anthrax to be used in a specially designed fragmentation bomb.

In 1943, the United States began research into the use of biological
agents for offensive purposes. This work was started, interestingly enough, in
response to a perceived German biological warfare (BW) threat as opposed to a
Japanese one. The United States conducted this research at Camp Detrick (now
Fort Detrick), which was a small National Guard airfield prior to that time, and
produced agents at other sites until 1969, when President Nixon stopped all
offensive biological and toxin weapon research and production by executive
order. Between May 1971 and May 1972, all stockpiles of biological agents and
munitions from the now defunct U.S. program were destroyed in the presence of
monitors representing the United States Department of Agriculture, the
Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, and the states of Arkansas,
Colorado, and Maryland. Included among the destroyed agents were Bacillus
anthracis, botulinum toxin, Francisella tularensis, Coxiella burnetii, Venezuelan
equine encephalitis virus, Brucella suis, and Staphylococcal enterotoxin B. The
United States began a medical defensive program in 1953 that continues today at USAMRIID1.

1972 -- the arrest in 1972 in Chicago of members of a US right-wing group known as the
"Order of the Rising Sun," "dedicated to creating a new master race," who possessed 30 to
40 kilograms of typhoid bacteria cultures for use against water supplies in Chicago, St.
Louis, and other Midwestern cities. According to one source, the two instigators, charged
with conspiracy to commit murder, were college students, one of whom, a 19-year-old, "had apparently developed the culture in a school laboratory, where a quantity was found". Ponte identifies the facility in question as a Chicago City College lab. According to him, the two arrested members of this "neo-Nazi" organization, one of whom was a "local hospital worker," had "in their possession detailed plans for dumping the deadly germs into the water supplies". Berkowitz et al. report that the Chicago City College student, one Steven Pera, "had worked as a volunteer at a Chicago hospital medical center, but was ordered off the premises when it was learned that he had grown bacterial cultures there and had attempted to obtain chemicals without the proper authority". After recounting this incident, Mengel noted that "the organism selected would have been readily destroyed by normal chlorination". Jenkins and Rubin, agreeing with this judgment, added that "The two had recruited six or seven members who were to be inoculated against the disease, but two of the recruits panicked and tipped off the police.")

In 1972, the United States, UK, and USSR signed the Convention on the
Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological
(Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on Their Destruction, commonly called the
Biological Weapons Convention. Over 140 countries have since added their
ratification. This treaty prohibits the stockpiling of biological agents for offensive
military purposes, and also forbids research into such offensive employment of
biological agents. However, despite this historic agreement among nations,
biological warfare research continued to flourish in many countries hostile to the
United States. Moreover, there have been several cases of suspected or actual
use of biological weapons. Among the most notorious of these were the “yellow
rain” incidents in Southeast Asia, the use of ricin as an assassination weapon in
London in 1978, and the accidental release of anthrax spores at Sverdlovsk in
1979.

Testimony from the late 1970’s indicated that Laos and Kampuchea were
attacked by planes and helicopters delivering aerosols of several colors. After
being exposed, people and animals became disoriented and ill, and a small
percentage of those stricken died. Some of these clouds were thought to be
comprised of trichothecene toxins (in particular, T2 mycotoxin). These attacks
are grouped under the label “yellow rain”. There has been a great deal of
controversy about whether these clouds were truly biological warfare agents.
Some have argued that the clouds were nothing more than feces produced by
swarms of bees.

In 1978, a Bulgarian exile named Georgi Markov was attacked in London
with a device disguised as an umbrella. The device injected a tiny pellet filled
with ricin toxin into the subcutaneous tissue of his leg while he was waiting for a
bus. He died several days later. On autopsy, the tiny pellet was found and
determined to contain the toxin. It was later revealed that the Bulgarian secret
service carried out the assassination, and the technology to commit the crime
was supplied by the former Soviet Union.

In April, 1979, an incident occurred in Sverdlovsk (now Yekaterinburg) in
the former Soviet Union which appeared to be an accidental aerosol release of
Bacillus anthracis spores from a Soviet Military microbiology facility: Compound
19. Residents living downwind from this compound developed high fever and
difficulty breathing, and a large number died. The Soviet Ministry of Health
blamed the deaths on the consumption of contaminated meat, and for years
controversy raged in the press over the actual cause of the outbreak. All
evidence available to the United States government indicated a massive release
of aerosolized B. anthracis spores. In the summer of 1992, U.S. intelligence
officials were proven correct when the new Russian President, Boris Yeltsin,
acknowledged that the Sverdlovsk incident was in fact related to military
developments at the microbiology facility. In 1994, Meselson and colleagues
published an in-depth analysis of the Sverdlovsk incident (Science 266:1202-
1208). They documented that all of the cases from 1979 occurred within a
narrow zone extending 4 kilometers downwind in a southerly direction from
Compound 19. There were 66 fatalities of the 77 patients identified.

1982 -- the reported arrest by Los Angeles police and FBI agents of a man "who was
preparing to poison the city's water system with a biological poison" .

1983 -- the arrest by the FBI in the Northeastern US in 1983 of two brothers who had
succeeded in manufacturing an ounce of nearly pure ricin, stored in a 35-mm film canister (Douglass and Livingstone 1987: 31)

1984 -- in September 1984 the Rajneesh cult outside of Antelope, Oregon was said to have contaminated salad bars in local restaurants in The Dalles, Oregon, with Salmonella typhi (typhoid), resulting in the poisoning of 750 people, in order to "influence the outcome of a local election".

1984 -- the discovery in Paris, variously dated to 1980, the "mid-'80s", or 14 October
1984, of a Red Army Faction "safe house" that included a "primitive laboratory" (according
to one source, a bathtub containing quantities of botulinal toxin). Douglass and Livingstone provide the most detailed account of this incident: "The sixth-floor apartment contained typed sheets on bacterial pathology. Marginal notes were identified by graphologists as being the handwriting of Silke Maier-Witt, a medical assistant by profession, terrorist by night. Other items included medical publications dealing with the struggle against bacterial infection....In the bathroom, the French authorities found a bathtub filled with flasks containing cultures of Clostridium botulinum". This may be the same incident as that described by the US House Armed Services Committee as having occurred in 1989 (!) involving the discovery of a culture of clostridinium botulinum in a "home laboratory" in Paris of a cell of the German "Bader Mainhof gang".

UNSCOM has discovered that Iraq produced 19,000 litres of botulinum, 8,400 litres of
anthrax, 2,000 litres of aflatoxin and clostridium.

Russia - A defector from the former Soviet biological weapons program said in an interview on 24 February that Moscow's Cold War plans for World War III included preparing "hundreds of tons" of anthrax bacteria and scores of tons of smallpox and plague viruses for deployment on inter-continental ballistic missiles. The defector, debriefed by the CIA in 1992 after his defection, said that the Russian military was still running an offensive biological weapons program in 1991, and may still do so.

In 1995, further information on Iraq’s offensive program was made
available to United Nations inspectors. Iraq conducted research and
development work on anthrax, botulinum toxins, Clostridium perfringens,
aflatoxins, wheat cover smut, and ricin. Field trials were conducted with Bacillus
subtilis (a simulant for anthrax), botulinum toxin, and aflatoxin. Biological agents
were tested in various delivery systems, including rockets, aerial bombs, and
spray tanks. In December 1990, the Iraqis filled 100 R400 bombs with botulinum
toxin, 50 with anthrax, and 16 with aflatoxin. In addition, 13 Al Hussein (SCUD)
warheads were filled with botulinum toxin, 10 with anthrax, and 2 with aflatoxin.
These weapons were deployed in January 1991 to four locations. In all, Iraq
produced 19,000 liters of concentrated botulinum toxin (nearly 10,000 liters filled
into munitions), 8,500 liters of concentrated anthrax (6,500 liters filled into
munitions) and 2,200 liters of aflatoxin (1,580 liters filled into munitions).
The threat of biological warfare has increased in the last two decades,
with a number of countries working on the offensive use of these agents.

The extensive program of the former Soviet Union is now primarily under the control of Russia. Former Russian President Boris Yeltsin (1931-2007) stated that he would put an end to further offensive biological research; however, the degree to which the program was scaled back is not known. Recent revelations from a senior BW program manager who defected from Russia in 1992 outlined a remarkably robust biological warfare program, which included active research into genetic engineering, binary biologicals and chimeras, and industrial capacity to produce agents. There is also growing concern that the smallpox virus, now stored in only two laboratories at the CDC in Atlanta and the Institute for Viral Precautions in Moscow, may be in other countries around the globe9.

''Medical defense against biological warfare or terrorism is an area of
study unfamiliar to most military and civilian health care providers during
peacetime. In the aftermath of Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm, it
became obvious that the threat of biological attacks against our soldiers was real.
Increased incidents and threats of domestic terrorism (e.g., New York City World
Trade Center bombing, Tokyo subway sarin release, Oklahoma City federal
building bombing, Atlanta Centennial Park bombing) as well as numerous
anthrax hoaxes around the country have brought the issue home to civilians as
well. Other issues, including the disclosure of a sophisticated offensive
biological warfare program in the Former Soviet Union (FSU), have reinforced
the need for increased training and education of health care professionals on
how to prevent and treat biological warfare casualties.
Numerous measures to improve preparedness for and response to
biological warfare or terrorism are ongoing at local, state, and federal levels.
Training efforts have increased both in the military and civilian sectors. The
Medical Management of Chemical and Biological Casualties Course taught at
both USAMRIID and USAMRICD trains over 560 military medical professionals
each year on both biological and chemical medical defense. The highly
successful 3-day USAMRIID satellite course on the Medical Management of
Biological Casualties has reached over 40,000 medical personnel over the last three years1.''

Part IV: First Responders - What To Do In An Emergency

What To Do Immediately If A Suspected Bioweapon or Bio-engineered Agent is Released?

Decontamination of Exposed Personnel.
Determination of the type of Contamination:
Primary Contamination or
Secondary Contamination
General Supportive Measures.
Isolation Procedures (Barrier Nursing).
Antibiotic Therapy. ●Antiviral Therapy.
Antitoxin Therapy.
PROTECTION OF HEALTH CARE PERSONNEL
Use of Barrier Techniques.
Potential Biological Hazards.
SECTION V - HANDLING OF CONTAMINATED REMAINS
SECTION VI - MASS CASUALTY MANAGEMENT
(source: Handbook on the Medical Aspects Of NBC Defensive Operations FM 8-9:

Recommendation for Medical First Responders, Support Staff and Medical Volunteers:
At a time of crisis this server will be overloaded so it is best that you identify the appropriate publicly available sections (Chapter 4, Management) in the above reference, download, hard print and file save now rather than in the middle of a crisis.

Don't forget to notify the CDC and USAMRIID (!)

Part V
You Can Never Predict With 100% Certainty The Next Surprise Attack
''Generals Are Always Fighting the Last War – Especially If They Have Won It''6(Part II)
I read a fascinating article by Colonel (Dr.) Jim A. Davis18 where he presents several hypothetical scenarios for an attack on the United States.
Other scenarios could equally be applied to any other country.
Dr Davis very logically covers each build up step, objective and motivational analysis. But what happens if our terrorists are not thinking 'inside the box'?

The fact is we do not know how, why nor when such an attack (if ever) will take place nor what the motives will be. It's assumed that a superpower will be the 'first strike' option for either a 'terrorist' country or group.
To be guaranteed success in a first world country however, a Third World country may well be the experimental testing ground for such a group with a particular technical strategy in mind. I mention this because there is always the inverted assumption that the superpowers develop their biological and nuclear capabilities in Third World settings (such as, for example, French nuclear tests on Moruroa Atoll – some fair distance from the Champs Elysee and the Arrondissements where such policies are formulated.) If this is so for developed nations, why should a terrorist group contemplating a bioterrorist attack not likewise seek out to test an experimental device(s) in a more remote region before launching it's main offensive in the developed world? But would this not alert the world? If it was identified as a bioterrorist attack, then yes. But what if it is misdiagnosed or misinterpreted? Or indeed what if a 'milder or 'designer'' version of the weapon is deployed – resulting in it physical symptoms and the 'outbreak' passing by unrecognized by the international community?
Some time ago I was told or read that a major Western power, as an exercise, had 'deployed' a 'relatively' harmless 'bioweapon' in secret, to test what the 'real' impact would be should 'the real' thing ever occur. The number of personnel involved were not insignificant but were all sworn to secrecy as the objective was of course to protect the entire population should the real deal ever occur. [I was not part of this deployment nor do I know anyone who was, but somewhere, at the time, I heard or read a rumor that something had taken place.]
Even for a 'designer' variation of the common cold, deployed as a binary weapon, the numbers of victims could be of epidemic proportions.


Most morbidity and mortality from BW threat agents is preventable. Immunizations, pre-exposure chemoprophylaxes, post-exposure chemoprophylaxes, and protective clothing are available to provide protection.
Personnel must have all required immunizations administered prior to entering an AO where BW agent employment is a threat. All immunizations should be administered in sufficient time to provide the initial protection before troops are deployed to the AO; when administration prior to deployment is impossible, troops must receive the immunizations as soon as the mission permits in the AO. Some immunizations are used in conjunction with pre-exposure chemoprophylaxes or post-exposure chemoprophylaxes to provide protection. The supporting PHS/PVNTMED units/staffs can assist commanders in determining which specific immunizations and chemoprophylaxes are required for the AO. The corps/division/wing/equivalent service/joint task force commander will decide whether to begin, continue, or discontinue the administration of chemoprophylaxes based on the BW threat. The intelligence officer, chemical officer, and surgeon advise the commander on appropriate courses of action. For those BW agents that a specific immunization is not available, the use of protective equipment combined with chemoprophylaxes may be employed to provide protection19.


Part VI – Ebola and Misinformation

Ebola
The spreading of Ebola beyond Central Africa was not unpredicted but the prophets of doom and gloom were brushed aside for decades in the interests of free market trade and commerce. To be more accurate, there were different professional viewpoints and as no coherent proactive strategy existed (nor exists) against the outbreak of a deadly virus it was not deemed appropriate to persuade African governments to devote considerable resources to education, hygiene and healthcare. Another issue is the philosophy of public service provision – infrastructure, healthcare and education. There is a perception in the United States that public services have a negative (non-productive) impact on economies so must therefore be consigned to the barest of minimum resource allocation while at the same time encouraging the private sector to develop ranges of chargeable services which would otherwise be the responsibility of the State. Where the provision of public services are contrary to the market economy then they must not be encouraged.
It is this misperception which, in part, has led to the present Ebola crisis and it will ultimately be that same misguided belief which will fuel future epidemics and pandemics - especially in parts of the world where such public services are either virtually non-existent or such are outsourced to the private sector.
Other than as a commercial beneficiary, the private sector has no interest whatever in healthcare infrastructures to 'save' populations.
Already we see in the stricken countries of West Africa that the best, brightest, most highly educated individuals who were 'first responders' to the crisis, that at least 50% of them are dead. The figure is probably higher. No country or region can sustain such losses without civil unrest. So the role of foreign military forces, initially deployed to assist with the medical 'mercy' missions, could very well face yet other dilemmas which they are wholly inadequately configured to manage – as recent global conflicts have so clearly demonstrated.


Other than Scare Tactics, What The Mainstream Media Is Not Addressing In Detail
What is not being addressed in the media at large is the potential to synthesize Ebola for terrorism. There are many easily obtainable items which can be synthesized to be deadly and some virtually untraceable by forensic experts  if administered under the right conditions. These are well known facts to those 'in the business'.
Fortunately there are few in any country engaged in bioweapons research who have such motivations but the potential for mass infection is steadily increasing.
As terrorists find themselves frustrated by advanced technological security systems they will seek to respond asymmetrically – by using base and crude elementary systems which completely bypass sophisticated arrays created in the developed world.

 
Part VII – What The Article Will Cover
What This Article Will Address
I want to focus on why Bioweapons are an optimal terrorist choice so that the layperson can have some insight and appreciation into the thinking behind the choice of such options on the battlefield – and indeed where the term 'battlefield' may be extended to larger conurbations in order to create maximum havoc, disruption and chaos and bring to a swift end, with minimum loss of life, a situation where the potential for protracted warfare resulting in the loss of millions of souls, is very real.
The introduction was meant to make you be 'comfortable' with the fact that biowarfare is not a 20th nor 21st century phenomenon.

Objectives Of This Article
The purpose of this article is therefore not to look at countermeasures nor present anything but the crudest of scenarios already in the public domain.
Neither is this article concerned with how to develop them for first strike capability but it does focus on how to identify them when they have arrived and how to respond to protect the populace. So the objective here is knowledge, protection and survival.
This article will therefore not examine the efficacy or otherwise of countermeasures to defeat such terrorism but make a few suggestions as to how would-be first responders (including volunteers) can proactively prepare for something which, hopefully, will never happen (at least not in my lifetime.)
Don't Die of Ignorance
The second purpose is to inform the general public about what is out there, being worked on, so that some may take appropriate measures to protect themselves and their families – because no government has the resources to protect entire populations from germ warfare and the only contingency measures in place are containment and martial law to (it is hoped) prevent civil unrest.

What You Need To Know
A further recommendation is that you access pictures on the internet showing diseases and symptoms of infectious diseases outlined below.
The USAMRICD1 and CDC2 are good starting points for such an exercise.
You should download these public access materials save and hard file them in appropriate folders under the relevant medical categories for pathogen symptoms.
For medical professionals, both The USAMRICD1 and CDC2 provide distance learning courses and will welcome your contact and input.

The article below is by no means comprehensive but at least it's probably more knowledge than you had before reading.


Part VIII - Bioweapons
                                      Bioweapons – A Summary & Review

                                  There are 3 distinct types of Bioweapons:

1.Respiratory
2.Bacteria-Based Weapons
3.Genetically Engineered Bioweapons

Respiratory and Dispersion

The first thing which is to be mentioned is that any medium which carries air over water has the capability to absorb toxic clouds ultimately dispersing them, through air filtration (air conditioning systems) througtals and other public buildings, decorative waterfalls and fountains in public places, even showers can all be utilized as effective mediums by biological weaponry agents.
Other mediums can create 'false flags':hout a target area.
This is how Legionnaires disease first got started. Supermarket air coolers for fruit, vegetables, other produce, air vents in hotels, hospitals and office buildings.
For example terrorists can create scenarios where members of the public unwittingly 'carry' or 'transport' lethal viruses which under certain conditions will activate and disperse.
[This could be, for example, in the form of a 'present' given to a child to 'carry' through any locus where there are major public gatherings.]
A terrorist scenario, for example, would be to 'infect' all hospitals or indeed other emergency response personnel – including police and military - in a region – thereby incapacitating if not crippling the ability of the critical emergency services to respond to the forthcoming secondary (principle or primary) biological attack as most of the response personnel are now either infected or dead.   In Third World countries the ratio of Military medical emergency parallel services is very weak if existing at all and few ever practice for such a scenario. I will not go into the reasons why as the objective here is to identify weaknesses and it's not my job to provide 'band aid' solutions for the Third World – they need to look to their respective governments to do that. Even Third World countries should have a 'backup' emergency plan in the event of such a scenario. There should be a tier of paramedicals who are not within the system but engaged (and valued) as local, district and regional volunteer helpers and who have some basics in a range of skills which could, potentially, 'hold the line' until large-scale assistance arrives on the scene.
There is no Third World country I know of which, at present, is even   contemplating having such a system as major crises, by their very nature, result in reactive and not (preparatory) proactive management actions – principally because of the time and costs involved.]

The innocent person will then, after perhaps exhaustive utilization of time, scientific and human resources, be apprehended while the real terrorists will meanwhile have implemented their real objective or objectives – overwhelming the ability of even the most advanced country to respond with the specialized resources – overstretched as they now already are. Invasive pathogens - Salmonella, Shigella, Cholera, E Coli,are examples of infective gram negative bacteria1 which can with ease establish harmful infective human hosts.
For health professionals, how substances traverse the gastrointestinal tract are of fundamental importance.
If, like me, you are not a medical professional, please ensure that you contact the Press Office of both The USAMRICD1 and CDC2 with any enquiries.

Other Bioweapons
Sexually transmitted diseases (Gonorrhoea, Syphilis and AIDS) can be grown in cultures and incorporated into abrasion dusts (weapons which cause scratching-like symptoms.)
Once the host (victim) starts scratching, the abrasions are uploaded with the disease organisms at the contact points and under the fingernails of the targets. Once inside the tissues, the infections are dispersed through the tissues, organs, and bloodstream.
Any scenario where there is a massive build up of organisms in colonies (billions for each colony) that can be seen and the accumulation of toxins can cause very rapid infection followed by expiration (death.)

As I mentioned in an earlier article extract (U.S. Army, Fort Sam, Texas) animals, birds, and insects can be reservoirs (vectors) for a wide range of disease organisms. The vectors transmit the deadly organisms usually by biting the victim and passing the microbial into the tissues with saliva or similar liquid medium. This is only one means of transmission. Urination and death of the vector also have the potential to spread the pathogenic bacteria.
Rabies, Yellow Fever, Dengue Fever,Encephalitis, Tick Fever, Plague, Tularaemia, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Typhus, Chagas, Sleeping Sickness, Malaria are passed to humans in the aforementioned ways14.
There are very special characteristics for the above for use as bioweapons.
The first is that none can survive for prolonged periods outside their host carriers or humans. If they can create a bridge or bridges to enter the victims target tissues, the respiratory tract will facilitate as the transport medium for mass dispersal inside the human body.


Direct Contact From Burns, Wounds, Chemical Injuries or Abrasions

For the medical professional knowledge of how the epidermis and dermis function as active and passive absorption layers and defenders is critical. Below the two layers lie the tissues and circulatory systems which move all the nutrients around the human body.
The same system is easily hijacked by infecting organisms in the context of our discussion.


Bacteria-Based Weapons

The thing to be cognizant about here is that bacteria which require oxygen to grow and replicate are called aerobic bacteria and those which only grow in the absence of oxygen are know as anaerobic bacteria. The mediums which can be utilized to grow bacteria and toxins for use as Bioweapons are available to the poorest countries in the Third World.
They are pretty basic and are at the core of what I have often referred to over the years as 'the poor man's nuclear bomb.'



Part IX - Anthrax

Anthrax

Identification of Anthrax as a Cause of Death
Before discussing anthrax it is worth mentioning a very unique identifying feature of the deadly infection: The blood oxygen level falls to less than 1%. from the normal 18-21% for arterial blood and 12% - 15% (v/v) for cleated erythrocytes.
In all other causes of death (including death by asphyxiation) the blood oxygen level remains above 6%.
The locus of application of any toxin and it's density (strength) together with the strain of anthrax will determine it's rate of effectiveness. Applications of different strengths and strains to different parts of the human body will dramatically affect the time taken for the the bioweapon to affect the target.

There are 4 routes to anthrax infection
1.Cutaneous Infection (an abrasion to the skin)
2.Gastrointestinal Infection (eating undercooked meat from an infected animal)
3.Inhalation (Pulmonary) Infection (where you breathe in anthrax spores)
4Injection Infection

Anthrax is aerobic, facultative anaerobe, non-motile and spore forming.
It has existed since man first started domesticating animals in the fertile region of the Tigris-Euphrates delta. It was believed to be one of the seven plagues of Egypt at the time of Moses and has been described in detail by the ancient Greeks.
It is spread exclusively from the nose, mouth, anus, faeces, tissues of infected and dead animals and humans. It forms spores which can last for decades and is highly resistant to heat, pH changes, and humidity all of which account for the almost impossible task of eradicating it from infected areas and why the import of on the hoof or cooked meat from infected zones is strictly forbidden. For example, anthrax spores were isolated from naturally infected soil one hundred years after the soil was first infected. Humans are infected with anthrax in the natural environment through dermal, respiratory and ingestion routes of entry.
To give two examples, anthrax has been isolated from the animal hide and skins covering traditional wooden drums from Africa.
Anthrax spores are highly resilient even after decades in dry ,arid climates.
The anthrax spores of Infected animals which were slaughtered and cooked were found to have survived the cooking process – and have also ended up in the bone meal which were industrially packaged and fed as meal feed to animals. Anthrax produces a toxin which requires 3 factors to be virulent.
All 32 must be present for maximum toxicity (to cause maximum harm.)
1.Protective Antigen (PA)
2.Lethal Factor (LF)
3.Edema Factor (EF)

All 3 components are serologically active, distinct, and immunogenic.
A combination of PA and LF are required for lethal infections.
PA and EF cause infection (Edema reaction.)
EF and LF together, have no effect whatsoever.

The path to infection is that PA is activated (reacts) to receptors on the host (victim) cell surface.
These produce changes on the cell surface which changes themselves act as 'keys' to 'unlock' the cell, thereby permitting EF and LF to enter the cell through these 'keyholes' created by the PA-cell surface interface. EF then reacts with a heat stable substance to produce the toxin activated swelling (or edema) reaction. The toxin alone, however, is not sufficient for virulence.
Only strains of B, anthracis13, that produces both a spore (capsule) and a toxin are considered virulent.

Why Anthrax is So Deadly and a 'Designer' Bioweapon of Choice?

When anthrax infects a host (victim) antibodies are produced against the capsular antigen but these antibodies are not protective against the toxin. The toxin gradually accumulates inside the host until it causes death from respiratory failure and anoxia by it's actions on the CNS (central nervous system.) On an ordinary culture medium (or media) the anthrax grows but does not produce it's exotoxin. The anthrax bacteria itself is not toxic either.
This is the reason why vaccines produced with 'dead' anthrax cells were ineffective at providing immunity. The 3 factors identified above require live animal tissue to produce the toxin. In nature, when the spores germinate and when they vegetate in incubator areas, they likewise do not produce these factors nor toxin.

Immediate Signs of Infection

When the organism gains access to living (human) tissue through a cut or abrasion, they multiply with a very dramatic inflammatory response:
2-5 days after infection a small papule develops that quickly becomes a vesicle filled with dark bluish-black fluid. Rupture of this vesicle reveals a black eschar at the base with a prominent ring of reaction around the eschar. This is called the malignant pustule.
If at this stage the carbuncle is incised and drained or surgically removed, the natural immunity system of a healthy individual will normally 'kick-start' to prevent further spread of the infection. This assumes an active, healthy, immune system and the statistics for persons of different ages would identify 21-33 year-olds as the optimal for such systems activations. 12al professionals, knowledge of the inhalation process all the way to the lungs to the draining hilar lymph nodes and identifying the initial signs of haemorrhagic necrosis is critical. Knowledge of the bloodstream flow to the spleen where the toxin multiplies in enormous numbers, together with knowledge of how alveolar phagocytes attempt to contain the infection by attacking and ingesting the spores (toxins) and then naturally carry them to the mediastinal lymph nodes – where they have not only have survived the phagocyte attack but are here actively germinating, is critical to the understanding of the spread of the infection throughout the organism. From here the cells now infect the entire organism. The symptoms are typically those of a respiratory infection with fever, malaise, myalgia, and unproductive cough. Within several days marked respiratory distress septicaemia, meningitis, and cyanosis become apparent.
Expiration (Death) usually occurs within 24 hours of this worsening. Only a very small number of spores are required to be effective by the inhalation route.
This is why health professionals may not, at first, be prepared to believe or accept or even recognize what they are seeing as symptoms of an anthrax attack.
This is not uncommon nor is it to be criticized in hindsight but most will quickly recognize that if numbers of individuals are displaying similar symptoms there must be something happening and will quickly then work out that what was a side show in their medical training has now just become mainstream. It is for these reasons that I refer health professional s to the best available sources of data on these topics in the world - USAMRICD1 and The CDC2.



Part X
I don't Want To Be Alarmist but.....
We Are [or Could Be] Under An [Unknown] BioWeapon Attack, What Should We Do?
In Third World countries, for health professionals having access to the internet, the first advice in such circumstances should always be to follow the chain of command within their country's medical structure. In addition to this however no medical or paramedical or health worker or health assistant or High School First Aid Volunteer should be without the email and Skype contact details for the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta, Georgia, The United States, and USAMRICD.  This they should retain in a book of international health emergency contacts.   The reason I suggest these is because local chains of command may neither have the expertise, personnel nor the resources and if the 'attack' which is occurring is over a religious festive period (during Christmas, Ramadan, Eid, Nowruz, Diwali, Wesak or Songkran as examples) the country may not have the senior political nor medical personnel in place to quickly respond to an emergency situation. Therefore assistance with some vital questions and answers may not be easily forthcoming, locally, at this time of crisis which has the potential to escalate into a national, regional and, at the very worst, potentially global, tragedy.


'Designer' Genetically Modified Bioweapons: - Weapons of First World Terrorist Choice

Genetically engineered pathogens would likely prove to be more challenging than any preceding anthrax attack to date. Their unique properties would include:
1.High transmissivity
2.Higher Communicability
3.Higher antibiotic resistance – since the strains can easily be 'intelligently' bio-engineered to 'mutate' on each new 'encounter' developing a counter-vaccine would prove very challenging.

For example, the entire DNA sequence of the smallpox genome is known and may, already, have been genetically manipulated.


Apart from the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta, it's counterpart in The Russian Federation is The Russian State Research Center for Virology and Biotechnology at Koltsovo, Novosibirsk.
You will find when you reference the website that it is not as 'globally' orientated as it's U.S. Counterpart as is more 'ethnocentrically' focused on it's FSU (Former Soviet Union) 'client' states than, for example, on the Third World, where it has little input nor impact on daily lives.

There have been reports that Al Qaeda have sought to financially acquire Bioweapons.

What you must appreciate here is that the vast majority of individuals involved in researching such organisms are not motivated by the desire to destroy the world but to understand the 'psychology' and bio-mechanisms of unknown structures to prevent catastrophes not to create them. Sadly it only takes one (or a few working and cooperating in consort with a range of required skills) or an intelligent 'lone wolf' - and there goes the neighborhood (!) In this regard I am not unconvinced that there are not many intelligent 'lone wolfs' worldwide. For this reason, I am predicting, there will be individuals and groups who have enough knowledge to not just create the scenarios outlined above but maybe even go further – as their programs and objectives are unknown and not subject to 'oversight' (!)



Part XI – Asymmetric Warfare
Most would-be bioterrorists are seeking to identify, cultivate, engineer and utilize viruses with the capability for  'instant kills' - usually on behalf of a political, economic, financial religious (cult) or spiritual ideology.  By their very nature, this reduces the morbidity-mortality** ratio to the bare minimum.
In the context of this article however, the 'perfect' virus is one which adaptively, sequentially, and non-sequentially will mutate, infect widely (exponentially - high transmissibility), cause general panic (fear of the unknown) kill over months or even years - and during this time be virtually undetectable - thereby ensuring the perpetrator(s) are difficult to identify and have long-since made their exit from the target area before the effects (symptoms) become apparent.  The 'perpetrator' could be a State, or a 'false flag' created by a State, group, individuals or even by the proverbial 'lone wolf'. Fortunately such a virus (known or unknown) does not (or is unlikely to) provide for 'instant gratification' - and is of limited use (if at all) for terrorists attempting to achieve objectives within timeframes as determined by circumstances on the ground.  One cannot be entirely dismissive of a State-backed group having the motivation and support to be 'encouraged' to 'pursue' a long-term strategy in this regard.

Asymmetric BioWarfare
As we develop more complex systems of deterrence what more ideal scenarios for Bioterrorists is to 'get back to basics' with such mediaeval and crude responses to completely make sophisticated systems almost obsolete. There are a myriad of ways to significantly degrade modern security systems specifically designed to detect a Bio-terror attack.

Initial Confusion – A Natural Reaction To An Unexpected Bioterror Attack
In the event of an attack with a genetically engineered pathogen likewise health professionals would, initially have some confusion as to whether this was a naturally occurring event or something more sinister. Other than in the medical textbooks or as a sideshow to their University medical course few (if any) will ever have seen the effect on humans of smallpox or the visible aftermath of an anthrax attack.

The Scenario
A genetically engineered attack could unfold unlike no other to date.
The time sequence between infection and outbreak could be days, weeks or even months.
The symptoms and progress or course of the infection, if the pathogen mutates sequentially or non-sequentially, would cause general panic.
I recall from my childhood reading about, I believe it was a French colony in the West Indies, perhaps Guadeloupe, where after a volcanic eruption the only survivors in an area were prisoners. They had survived because they were locked in dungeon cells.
You might find similar scenarios in the aftermath of such an attack where individuals and groups who, perhaps by accident, were 'isolated' from mainstream populations had initially been unaffected until contact was resumed.
As with the Black Death in Mediaeval Europe, individuals with particular genetic sequences or 'gene defects' may well prove resilient to such a bioterrorist or bioengineered attack. We cannot say with any certainty how a bioengineered agent would 'code' with an 'abnormal' genetic sequence.
As with any virus, the 'key' requires and exact 'lock' to fit in order to open the cell for exploitation.
For the health professionals and volunteers securing teams of non-infected individuals should be a priority.
Protective clothing and masks must, as a priority, be upgraded to ensure it will match the anticipated NBCR environments.
By choosing inferior quality products, Third World (and perhaps also Developed countries) countries will only learn, sadly, from bitter experience, why cost-cutting in their choice of suppliers in this area, was a bad choice.


Part XII – The Next Generation of Bioweapons

The Next Generation Of Bioweapons

6 major categories of future pathogens have been assessed:
Binary Biological Weapons
Designer Genes23
Gene Therapy As A Weapon24
Stealth Viruses25
Host-swapping Diseases26
Designer Diseases27



Binary Biological Weapons

This would consist of 2 main components or parts which, when separate, would be innocuous but when combined would form the lethal pathogen. Many pathogenic bacteria contain multiple plasmids (small circular extrachromosomal DNA fragments that 'code' for virulence or other special tasks.)
To produce a binary biological weapon a host bacteria and a virulent plasmid could be independently isolated and produced in the required quantities. Just before deployment, the two or more individual components would be 'mixed' together to produce the lethal toxin. The transformation of the host organism back into a pathogen could conceivably, take place after the bioweapon is 'triggered' during whilst in transit.

Categories 2-6:
If you are a health professional, health volunteer or first responder please refer to the references below for each of the other given categories above.
It will be a very useful and worthwhile exercise for you to appreciate the references first
hand and for you to extrapolate potential scenarios from each. Such could well be used for emergency drills or other emergency planning exercises.


Part XIII – Neither Virus Nor Bacteria

BioWarfare Engineered Diseases Which Are Neither Virus nor Bacteria21
While there is fierce controversy (at this historical point) about the reference I am citing here, the core message is, without doubt, pointing to futureworld scenarios (already arrived) - which you ignore at your peril. I would refer you to pages 3-5 of 9 (.pdf version-not the similar version as cited below) in particular. I will not quote as fact from this article only refer you to it so you can judge it's relevance or otherwise  - If We Can Do It Then So Can The Bioterrorists - it's a 'walk in the park'.
I have a very personal reason for citing this reference which I will on this occasion share with you:
Some years ago, at a diplomatic reception an individual I don't know confronted me about something I had written about a country I had not visited (at least not recently.) He (or his superiors) were clearly irritated (or frustrated) that an insignificant 'upstart' (myself) should 'get it right' on an issue of major significance. Our conversation ended amicably but quite firmly along the lines that...well...maybe I should stick to writing about places I had visited recently rather than shoot my mouth (or pen as it was) off about places about which I had no first hand experience. Of course totally ignoring that I was factually accurate and more concerned with the fact that, in some inconvenient way, I had 'upset' the 'pecking order' of things, much to the irritation of those fat-do-nothing-chickens who just squawk and cluck and shake their feathers in all directions in the pen when anything wakes them up and they have to do something.
I assiduously try to avoid discussing anything (written article) I have worked on with people I don't know but sometimes it's unavoidable. I don't know the relevance nor significance of this article (reference 21) but I am motivated to include it because many of it's references cited are of highly respected individuals who are controversial but have significantly increased our understanding of Biowarfare as a developing tool in the Superpowers optional arsenals. If it is a developing tool in a State's arsenal, be assured the significance of this is not lost to terrorists.


Part XIV – Let Us Take An Example of State-Sponsored Bioterrorism

Chemical and Biological Agents Available To Any Developing Third World Country22
[and, because of either the absence or lax security, likewise potentially available to terrorists]
Note that the choice of chemical and biological agents below is based on an actual real occurrence documented by the United Nations22
I have identified and chosen this country's Program as a template because it's level of technological development at that time is currently being matched by countries in the Middle East, The Caucasuses, South East Asia and South America today.





Chemical and Biological Agents
Aldicarb is a pesticide. Its white crystals have a slightly sulphurous
odour. It is toxic. The probable oral lethal dose for humans is less than 5
milligram/kilogram (1/15th of a teaspoon for a 70-kilogram person). It is
poisonous by ingestion and skin contact. Death is caused by muscle
weakness, accumulation of fluids in the lungs, respiratory and heart failure,
epileptic fits and coma. (RRL offered aldicarb dissolved in orange juice).
Anthrax/ Bacillus anthracis is a highly infectious and virulent microorganism.
Human infection in the natural state is usually through the skin
but also follows after inhalation or ingestion. Inhaling B. anthracis spores
(dormant form) may result in pulmonary anthrax, which is often fatal.
Anthrax of the lungs follows 2-5 days after exposure and is
characterized by a mild initial phase of fever and malaise followed by
sudden onset of severe acute illness with high fever. The lymph nodes in the
chest become swollen and ulcerate, and these festering, bleeding
ulcerations spread to other important organs in the chest. Respiratory
distress develops, followed by cyanosis, shock, coma and death. Dr Mike
Odendaal told the TRC and the court that he had put anthrax spores on
cigarettes and on the gum of an envelope.
Azide (sodium azide, hydrazoic acid) salts are used industrially in the
manufacture of explosives and preservatives. It is a cell poison causing
death by a mechanism similar to that of cyanide. Sodium azide crystals are
colourless and odourless.
Azide is poisonous by ingestion, inhalation and skin contact. According
to Dr G. Muller, the medical expert who testified in the Basson trial,306 an
individual who ingested 700-800 milligrams (1/6th of a teaspoon) died three
days later as a result of failure to breathe. Death is caused by a fall in body
temperature and blood pressure, respiratory failure, epileptic fits and coma.
(RRL offered 3 doses of 1.5 grams of this substance mixed in whisky—well
over a fatal dose. RRL research reports relate that this poison was tested on
dogs, pigs and baboons.)307
Botulinum is a nerve poison produced by the micro-organism
Clostridium botulinum. It is the most poisonous biological toxin known,
about 1 million times more poisonous than arsenic. Ingestion in food causes
progressive paralysis of nerves and voluntary muscles (from half an hour to
90 
several days after ingestion) resulting in respiratory failure and death. (RRL
offered 4 beer bottles contaminated with botulinum).
Brodifacoum is classified as a superwarfarin. It prevents the clotting of
blood and is used in rat poison. It is an off-white powder. Poisonous by
ingestion, it blocks the blood clotting cascade, causing bleeding for weeks
to months. Bleeding starts 36-48 hours after ingestion. Death is caused by
blood loss and brain haemorrhage. According to an RRL report prepared by 
James Davies and André Immelman, this substance was tested on 8 blue-apes,
who all bled to death, starting with their gums, over a 24-hour period. 
The researchers suggested that a larger group of primates be tested and other 
species be included in the experiment.308 RRL offered two peppermint chocolates 
contaminated with brodifacoum.
The pathogenic micro-organism B. melitensis causes the disease
known as brucellosis (Malta Fever). This infectious disease is characterized
by an acute fever stage and a chronic stage with relapses of fever, weakness,
sweats and vague aches and pains recurring over months or years. A single
dose is listed as having been given to a security force operator in October
1989.309
Cantharadin is a biological poison derived from blister beetle (Spanish
fly). The crystals are colourless and odourless. As little as 10 milligrams of
this toxin has been fatal. Systemic poisoning can develop after ingestion or
by skin contact. Physical contact causes potent skin and mucous membrane
irritation and blistering. Oral poisonous doses cause extensive organ
damage characterized by a burning sensation of the mouth and throat,
followed eventually by kidney and respiratory failure, shock and coma.
(Immelman gave 70 milligrams, enough to kill 7 people, to a policeman in
1989).310
Colchicine is an anti-inflammatory agent used in the management of
severe gouty arthritis. It is a pale yellow nearly odourless substance which
darkens on exposure to light. As little as 7 milligrams can cause death.
Symptoms and signs of poisoning, 2 to 12 hours after ingestion, include
severe nausea and vomiting, bleeding from the gut, and shock. This
progresses to multiple organ failure, especially heart and respiratory failure,
and bleeding tendencies. Death, which may occur 7-36 hours after
91
ingestion, is usually due to respiratory failure and cardiovascular collapse.
(Immelman gave 75 milligrams of colchicine, enough to kill 10 people,
hidden in whisky, to a policeman, in September 1989.)
Digoxin is a well-known drug classified as a cardiac glycoside. It is
commonly used in the management of heart failure and abnormalities in
heart rhythm. Digoxin powder is composed of odourless, white crystals.
The therapeutic dose is close to the lethal dose. The usual therapeutic
dose ranges from 0.125 to 0.25 milligrams per day. Adult patients with
normal hearts (those not on digoxin) rarely develop life-threatening
poisoning with less than 5 milligrams in an acute ingestion. However, acute
ingestion of 2 milligrams in patients on long-term digoxin therapy may result
in potentially serious poisoning. Acute digoxin poisoning usually presents
with nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, fatigue, delirium,
hallucination and seizures. Death is caused by severe heart rhythm
disturbances, resulting in heart failure and cardiac arrest. Immelman gave 5
milligrams away. (The State prosecutors allege that the intention was to use
this to poison ANC leader Dullah Omar.311 Basson was acquitted on the
charge of having been involved in this incident.)
The mamba is a dangerously venomous snake. The venom is a
neurotoxin. Prodomal symptoms of neurotoxicity, including drowsiness,
vomiting, hyper salivation, increased sweating, trembling, skeletal muscle
fasciculation and circumoral sensation of pins and needles may appear
within 5-10 minutes. More specific and classical neurotoxic symptoms and
signs, which may develop within 30-120 minutes, include: blurred speech
and difficulty in swallowing. Progressive respiratory muscle paralysis,
leading to respiratory failure, is the most serious neurotoxic effect, usually
developing within one to three hours and is usually the cause of death.
(Immelman gave away an unspecified amount of mamba toxin.)312
Mercuric oxycyanide is a white crystalline powder. It contains both
mercury and cyanide. The clinical picture of acute organic mercury
poisoning includes vomiting, a bloody diarrhoea, a profound circulatory
collapse (shock) and kidney failure within 24 hours. (Immelman gave a man
he knew only as “Koos”, believed to have been a policeman, 4 grams of this
poison.)313
92
Methanol (wood alcohol) is a poisonous alcohol. It is an inherent cell
poison. At room temperature it is a colourless liquid with a slight alcoholic
odour. Methanol is converted in the human liver to formaldehyde and then
to formic acid. It is these two metabolites, rather than the methanol, that
are highly poisonous. If untreated, methanol poisoning can lead to visual
changes, severe acidosis, kidney failure, coma and finally respiratory or
heart failure and arrest. (Three doses of 30 millilitres are recorded on the
RRL Sales list.)
Paraoxon is an organophosphate pesticide. It is a potent nerve poison
which is poisonous by ingestion, by mucous membrane as well as skin
contact. Probable oral lethal dose for humans may be as low as 1/50th of a
teaspoon for a 70-kilograms person. One drop in the eye may be fatal.
Death is caused by muscle weakness, accumulation of fluids in the lungs,
respiratory and heart failure, epileptic fits and coma. (Ten doses of 2
millilitres, far more than what is needed to kill one adult, were made
available by Immelman.)314
Paraquat is a domestic and commercial herbicide. It is a potent cell
poison causing multisystem organ failure and lung damage in fatal cases.
Colourless to yellow salt, odourless to mild ammonia smell. An estimated
lethal dose of the concentrated solution is 10-15 millilitres, and 1-2 grams
of the salt. Ingestion causes chemical burning of the mouth and throat with
ulceration. Severe paraquat poisoning may result in severe toxicity and
death within 24 hours as a result of lung, heart, liver and kidney damage.
Survivors usually develop progressive fibrosis (scarring) of the lung within 5-
10 days after exposure. Patients eventually die of respiratory failure.
Paraquat poisoning is almost always fatal. (RRL offered 75 millilitres of this
poison in whisky, enough to kill 5 people.)
Phencyclidine (PCP) has become a drug of abuse since the 1970s. It
is a standardised chemical warfare agent known as agent SN. It can be
described as a psychedelic agent. It was originally developed as a general
anaesthetic agent and its effects are similar to those of ketamine. It is a white
crystalline powder, readily soluble in water and alcohol, with a bitter taste.
Catatonic posturing is produced, resembling that of schizophrenia.
Abusers may appear to be reacting to hallucinations and exhibit hostile or
dissociative behaviour. Severe psychological disturbance can be produced
93
by toxic doses. (Immelman gave 5 doses of 100 milligrams to psychologist
Johnny Koortzen in 1989.)315
Salmonella typhimurium and S. typhi are pathogenic microorganisms
which can cause various disease states, e.g. food poisoning and
typhoid fever. Salmonella typhimurium patients usually present with
vomiting, severe watery diarrhoea, colicky stomach pains, blood in the
stools. Duration varies from 1 or 2 days to weeks or longer. (RRL offered 3
bottles of deodorant contaminated with this pathogen.)
Salmonella typhi is the cause of typhoid fever. The incubation period
(3-25 days) related directly to the number of organisms ingested. Typhoid
fever is a generalized infection causing fever, headache, chills, backache
and nose bleeds. Stomach pains dominate, heart rate slows down and
diarrhoea occurs late. Delirium and confusion are common. Complications
include bleeding from the bowels. Bowel perforation is the most frequent
fatal complication.
Sodium cyanide is a white solid which may be powder, granular, egg
shaped or flake form. It is odourless when dry but may have the
characteristic bitter almond odour when wet. The ability to detect this
odour is genetically determined and 20 to 60 per cent of the population are
unable to detect its presence.
The fatal dose of cyanide salts is estimated at 200-300 milligrams for
an adult (1/25th of a teaspoon). Cyanide is absorbed by ingestion,
inhalations, through eye and intact skin. Sodium cyanide exposure may
produce death within minutes. Exposure to smaller amounts may produce
nausea, vomiting, palpitations, confusion, rapid breathing and vertigo and
dizziness. Fatal doses rapidly progress to agitation, seizures, accumulation
of fluid in lungs, coma, respiratory arrest and death. (The Sales list records
50 capsules having been given to “Koos” in August 1989. Three peppermint
chocolates contaminated with cyanide are offered by RRL.)316
Thallium acetate is a thallium salt, used as an insecticides and
rodenticide. Due to the toxicity of thallium salts these have been banned in
many countries. Thallium is a cellular toxin causing cell death.
It is colourless, odourless and tasteless and extremely toxic. The lethal
dose is 12 milligrams/kilogram of body weight based on animal data.
94
Thallium salts are well absorbed after ingestion, inhalation or skin contact.
Symptoms of acute poisoning are usually delayed for 12 to 24 hours and
may only reach their peak effect in the second or third week after exposure.
This may lead to complete paralysis and death. Nerve damage may be
permanent in survivors. (One gram of the substance is offered by RRL317
enough to kill a large person.)
Vibrio cholerae is the causative organism of the disease known as
cholera. Cholera is an acute infection involving the entire bowel. It is
characterized by profuse watery diarrhoea, vomiting, muscular cramps,
dehydration, kidney failure and collapse. Cholera can be a fulminant,
rapidly lethal disease. The incubation period is 1-3 days. Children and the
elderly are the first and most severely affected in a cholera outbreak. (32
bottles are offered by RRL—enough to affect the health of more than one
community.)
Vitamin D (cholecalciferol) is one of the fat-soluble vitamins and is
used as a rodenticide. It is a white, odourless crystalline salt. Daily ingestions
in excess of 2000 international units in children or 1.88 milligrams in adults
may produce toxic symptoms within weeks or months. Most of the acute
toxic effects of Vitamin D overdose are due to a rise in blood calcium. In
acute overdose, patients may present with nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea,
headache, itching, weakness, peripheral nerve damage, depression,
confusion, heart rhythm disturbances and myocardial infraction. Four
grams are offered by RRL.318
Other substances investigated at RRL, not on the Sales list, but
allegedly used by the operators in some cases include:
Ketalar or Ketamine can be classified as a general anaesthetic. It is also
a potent analgesic (pain reliever). It is commercially available as a solution,
under the trade name Ketalar. Because ketamine can be given
intramuscularly, it is relatively easy for a layperson to administer this drug.
General anaesthesia is induced within 4 minutes after injection. (Bothma
testified that he gave Theron Ketalar with which to anaesthetise the three
men at Dukuduku before injecting them with muscle relaxants.319 Theron
testified to having used it more than once under similar circumstances.320)
Aluminium phosphide or Phosphine is used as a fumigant/
rodenticide (for rats and moles). Upon contact with moisture, the pellets
95
release the poisonous gas phosphine. If ingested, phosphine is released
from aluminium phosphide by action of the stomach fluids. Pure aluminium
phosphide is a grey or yellowish salt. Phosphine is a colourless, flammable
gas with a decaying fish or garlic-like odour.
It is highly toxic. The normal lethal dose in a 70-kilogram person is
reported to be less than 500 milligrams. All patients who died had
consumed 3 or more aluminium phosphide tablets. Inhalation of phosphine
causes severe irritation of the airways, with cough, headache, tightness of
the chest, coma, epileptic fits, heart failure and fluid on the lungs. Death
can occur within 24 hours.
BZ (a-hydroxy-a-phenylbenzeneacetic acid, 1-azabicyclo[2.2.2]oct-3-
yl ester, 3-quinuclidinyl benzilate). BZ is an incapacitating agent.
Approximately 30 minutes after exposure to BZ aerosol, symptoms appear
such as disorientation with visual and auditory hallucinations. The
symptoms peak in four to eight hours, and may take up to four days to pass.
Other symptoms can include distended pupils, dry mouth, and increased
body temperature. The action of BZ on the central and peripheral nervous
systems resembles that of atropine. Like atropine, BZ binds to muscarinic
acetylcholine receptors.321
RRL microbiologist, Adriaan Botha told the authors that he worked
with the additional following organisms, which were part of the RRL culture
collection (maintained by Odendaal and Botha):322
Escherichia coli. This was used in the cloning of the Clostridium
perfringens epsilon toxin gene for vaccine development purposes. Although
Botha’s intention was to produce a vaccine as a result of this work, he was
aware of its potential military application. If the cloned gene could be
placed in E. coli it would have been able to produce the deadly toxin at a
far higher rate than the Clostridium would have been able to do.323
Clostridium perfringens. The cloning of the epsilon toxin gene for
introduction into Escherichia coli for vaccine development purposes.324
Flavobacterium sp and Pseudomonas sp. Both used in the
development of a method for detoxification of organophosphorus
compounds for both defensive and commercial purposes.325
96
Hormoconis resinae. This organism can grow in diesel and aviation
fuel leading to problems such as engine problems in tanks and ships as a
result of clogged fuel lines. It is suspected that this organism had caused
several airplane crashes. Botha was investigating this organism for both
defensive and offensive purposes.326
Included in the RRL culture collection were the following microorganisms:
Shigella flexneri
Salmonella typhimurium
Salmonella typhi
Yersinia enterocolitica
Escherichia coli H157
Vibrio parahaemolyticus
Escherichia coli EP
Brucella melitensis
Brucella abortus (terminates pregnancy in cows)
Bacillus anthracis
(The above list of pathogens was taken from the culture collection,
these organisms were grown and freeze-dried in 10 millilitres and 25
millilitres quantities which contained a high concentration of the
organisms.)327

The Report has approximately 297 pages and I suggest that health professionals and other personnel access and read it from cover to cover.
(access reference 22 below from UNIDIR to read the full Report)


Where To Go From Here?

We are reaching ominous watersheds or crossroads - driven by excessive greed, the blood-thirst for money and power at the expense of the weak and helpless, almost on a roller-coaster ride which begins to have dynamics all of it's own - and end up being unstoppable until it simply jumps off the rails.

 
Casualties 
                            (originally omitted from the final draft)

When you start to contemplate casualties (fatalities) in the hundreds of millions (or billions*) human life and the philosophies of life lose all meaning.
The concepts of what it means to be human and humanity almost cease, at least in their present form. 
Is such thinking completely irrational?  Only if you are a politician (and by definition a hypocrite with regard to the rationale of conflict or 'the good fight'.)
Will sanity prevail?  If you are an optimist then you must work on the basis that conflicts will be resolved without bloodshed and that scenarios such as those briefly outlined here will be consigned to the dustbin of antiquated history, a bygone age of stupidity and adolescence.
I fear however, the opposite is about to unravel - hence my own wish to make available what little knowledge which might be useful in the advent of something very dark, very ancient and very familiar to come coming knocking with tidings of a very different future than the confidence, the arrogance and the certainty of victory of good over evil our religious leaders, politicians, scientists and others would have us believe is inevitable - if we trust in their judgement and follow the Piper.7 (Part II)
.
*6.5-deceased
  0.5 varying/terminal injuries
  +0.125 - others -  terminal
  8 million completely unaffected

+The figure of 0.125 is not included in varying + terminal because such are dependent-living and genetically damaged beyond repair/replacement.  For those cognizant, the dilemmas and options here are painful.

Figures are based on the world population at the year 2013 (Sources include:World Bank8 (Part II) )


[Percent ratios can be calculated based on increased numbers.]


**http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/mmwr_wk.html
**http://www.diffen.com/difference/Morbidity_vs_Mortality



Patrick Emek
November 5, 2014


© Patrick Emek 2014
Permissions:
Full permission is given to reproduce any part or all of this document for educational and any non-profit purposes on condition that full acknowledgement is given to the author and any referenced material, if likewise utilized, is also acknowledged.


References (Part I)

8.Biological Warfare FAQs.
This FAQ was compiled as an adjunct to a presentation on biological weapons for the Ann
Arbor, Michigan Democratic Party April 23, 1998.
For further details email:racooncity1@inbox.com

    9.Medical Defense Against Biological Warfare: Source-Unknown
    contact racooncity1@inbox.com for further information on where to go






    Respiratory Bioweapons examples:

  1. The Looming Biological Warfare Storm: Misconceptions and Probable Scenarios by
    Colonel (Dr.) Jim A Davis, 2003
19. TREATMENT OF BIOLOGICAL WARFARE AGENT CASUALTIES:
    ARMY FM 8-284 NAVY NAVMED P-5042 AIR FORCE AFMAN (I) 44-156 MARINE CORPS MCRP 4-11.1C,
    July 17, 2000
    1. The United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR):
      Project Coast:Apartheid's Chemical and Biological Warfare Programme, Chandré Gould and Peter Folb Edited by Robert Berold, UNIDIR/2002/12
    25:Dr. John Martin: Stealth Viruses A Public Menace - CSF Radio Program Interview 11th. April. 1999 - with Roger G. Mazlen, M.D. , as Host Presenter
    25: What Are Stealth Viruses? Dr John Martin , M.D. , Ph.D Centre For Complex Infectious Diseases
    Explore 10:17 -19,2001
    26.The following is one title I highly recommend that you read:
    26:The Gathering Biological Warfare Storm: Barry R. Schneider, ‎Jim A. Davis - 2004 - ‎History extracts available for preview at:
    26.The Next generation Bioweapons by Michael J. Ainscough,Colonel, USAF
    27.ISIS Report (extract only available on-line to non-members but useful reading for the layperson and health professional) GM & Bio-weapons in the post-Genomics Era:
    http://www.i-sis.org.uk/gmbiopost.php
    1. Genetic Engineering and Bioweapons by Dr Mae-Wan Ho
      [if taken off-line please contact racooncity1@inbox.com for advice on where to go]
      References (Part II)
      references and further recommended reading:
      1.USAMRIID:Medical Management of Biological Casualties Handbook, 2006
      2.The History of Biological Warfare (Galen Press)
      2.Medical Defense Against Biological Warfare: USAMRIID handbook for medical professionals (first 88 pages) - contact USAMRIID
      3.USAMRIID’s MEDICAL MANAGEMENT OF BIOLOGICAL CASUALTIES HANDBOOK Fourth Edition, February 2001
      3.U.S. Army Medical Course Sub Course MD 0152 - Diseases of Military Importance
      Preventive Medicine Division, Army Medical Department Center and School, ATTN: MCCS-MP, Fort Sam Houston, Texas, 78234-6100.
      4.Emerging Viruses - Aids & Ebola - Nature, Accident or Intentional (Leonard G. Horowitz, D.M.D, M.A.,M.P.H,; Tetrahedron, Inc. 1996)
      5.September 12, 2014:
      5.WHO Emergency Notification For Health Professionals Worldwide:
      5.
      WHO:
      List of essential medicines for Ebola Treatment
      (Re-Issued November 2014)
      5.Alcohol-based hand rub Solution, 100ml bottle; 500ml bottle Disinfectant
      Ampicillin Powder for injection, 500mg. 1g (as sodium salt)in vial Antibacterials (in sceptic shocks management)
      Artesunate + Amodiaquine Tablet: 25mg + 67,5mg; 50mg + 135mg; 100mg + 270mg Antimalarial
      Arthemether + Lumefantrine Tablet: 20mg + 120mg (dispersible or not) Antimalarial
      Arthemether Oily injectable: 80mg/ml in 1ml ampoule Antimalarial
      Artesunate
      Injection, ampoules containing 60mg anhydrous artesunic acid with a
      separate ampoule of 5% sodium bicarbonate solution Antimalarial
      Ceftriaxone Powder for injection: 1g (as sodium salt) in vial Antibacterials (in sceptic shocks management)
      Ciprofloxacin Tablet: 250mg (as hydrochloride) Antibacterials (in sceptic shocks management)
      Diazepam Tablet (scored): 2mg; 5mg Anxiety and confusion In cooperative patients
      Diazepam Injection: 5mg/ml Convulsions
      Diazepam Gel or rectal solution: 5mg/ml in 0.5ml; 2ml; 4 ml tubes Convulsions
      Doxycycline Solid oral dosage form: 100mg (as hyclate) Antibacterials
      Epinephrine (adrenaline) Injection: 1mg (as hydrochloride or hydrogen tartrate) in 1 ml ampoule To manage shocks
      Ergometrine Injection: 200mcg (hydrogen maleate) in 1ml ampoule In case of pregnancy
      Furosemide Injection: 10mg/ml in 2 ml ampoule and 10mg, 20mg or 40 mg tablets In case of overload of fluids, diuretics
      Furosemide Tablet: 10mg; 20mg; 40mg In case of overload of fluids, diuretics
      Gentamicin Injection, 10mg; 40mg (as sulfate)/ml in 2ml vial Antibacterials (in sceptic shocks management)
      Glucose Injectable solution: 50% (hypertonic) Sign of hypoglycemia
      Haloperidol Injection: 5mg in 1 ml ampoule
      Confusion and aggression in non-cooperative
      patients
      Hydrocortisone Powder for inection: 100mg (as sodium succinate) in vial To manage shocks
      Insulin injection (soluble) Injection: 40IU/ml in 10ml vial; 100IU/ml in 10ml vial Antidiabetic
      Metoclopramide Injection: 5 ml (hydrochloride)/ml in 2ml ampoule Diarrhea, vomiting
      Metoclopramide Tablet: 10mg (hydrochloride) Diarrhea, vomiting
      Metronidazole Injection: 500mg in 100ml vial Antibacterials
      Metronidazole Tablet: 200mg to 500mg Antibacterials
      Morphine Tablet (immediate release): 10mg (morphine sulfate Analgesic
      Morphine
      Tablet (slow release): 10mg-200mg (morphine hydrochloride or
      morphine sulfate) Analgesic
      Omeprazole Solid oral dosage form: 10, 20, 40 mg Dyspepsia
      Ondansetron Solid oral dosage form: eq 4mg base; eq 8mg base; eq 24mg base Antiemetic
      Ondansetron Injection: 2mg base/ml in 2 ml ampoule (as hydrochloride) Antiemetic
      Oral rehydratation salts Powder in sachets for dilution in 200ml, 500ml or 1 liter Rehydratation
      Oxygen Inhalation (medicinal gas) Difficult breathing/respiratory distress
      Oxytocin Injection: 10 IU in 1ml In case of pregnancy
      Paracetamol Tablet: 100mg to 500mg Fever and analgesic
      Phenobarbital Injection: 200mg/ml (sodium) Convulsions
      Phytomenadione (Vitamin K) Injection: 10mg/ml in 5ml ampoule Bleeding
      Potassium chloride
      Solution: 11,2% in 20ml ampoule (equivalent to K+ 1,5mmol/ml,
      Cl:1,5mmol/ml Correction of electrolytes disturbances
      Quinine Injection: 300mg quinine hydrochloride/ml in 2ml ampoule Antimalarial
      Salbutamol Inhalation (aerosol): 100mcg (as sulfate) per dose Difficult breathing/respiratory distress
      Sodium bicarbonate Injection: 8.4%, 1 Meq/ml, 20ml, ampoule
      Sodium chloride
      Injectable solution: 0.9% isotonic (equivalent to Na+ 154mmol/l, Cl-
      154mmol/l) Rehydratation
      Sodium lactate, compound
      solution Injectable solution Rehydratation
      Tetracycline Eye ointment: 1% (hydrochloride) Antiinfective
      Tramadol Injection: 50mg/ml, 2ml ampoule (hydrochloride) Analgesic
      References:
      "INTERIM version 1.2 Ebola and Marburg virus disease epidemics: preparedness, alert, control, and evaluation, WHO, August 2014 (module of PPE in Annex 32 and 33)" http://www.who.int/csr/disease/ebola/manual_EVD/en/
      Clinical Management of Patients with Viral Harmorrhagic Fever, WHO, March 2014 http://www.who.int/csr/resources/publications/clinical-managementpatients/
      en/
      Interagency Emergency Health Kit 2011, WHO, 2011 http://www.who.int/medicines/publications/emergencyhealthkit2011/en/
      Bwaka et al., Journal of Infectious Diseases 1999; 179:(Suppl 1) S1-7
      WHO Model List of Essential Medicines, 18th list (April 2013) http://www.who.int/medicines/publications/essentialmedicines/en/
      Interim Infection Prevention and Control Guidance for Care of Patients with Suspected or Confimed Filovirus Haemorrhagic Fever in Health-Care Settings, with Focus on Ebola, WHO, August 2014 http://www.who.int/csr/resources/who-ipc-guidance-ebolafinal-09082014.pdf?ua=1
      Clinical Management of Patients with Viral Harmorrhagic Fever, WHO, March 2014
      Ebola and Marburg Outbreak Control Guidance Manual Version 2.0, MSF, 2007
      Filovirus haemorrahgic fever guideline, MSF, 2008 http://www.slamviweb.org/es/ebola/FHFfinal.pdf