Iraqi Defector Named As Source of Iraq War

CBS’ show 60 Minutes has identified Rafid Ahmed Alwan as ‘Curveball,’ the codename of the source of information in regards to the United States invading Iraq in 2003. It is said that Rafid Ahmed Alwan went to a German refugee center in 1999. The show revealed that Rafid Ahmed Alwan lied to get asylum saying that he was a chemical expert. However, the show states that Alwan isn’t the expert he said when getting asylum.

The claims of weapons of mass destruction such as the biological weapons supposed to be under Saddam’s control were all based on Alwan’s information. The information of these weapons was backed by the Bush Administration until the invasion of 2003. However, the show will not air until Sunday, November 4. Still, information can still be gathered on the website. The information states that Rafid Ahmed Alwan known as Curveball was not only a liar but also a thief. It also adds that Alwan was a poor student and not the chemical engineering genius.

60 Minutes also assumes that Rafid Ahmed Alwan is in Germany living under a different name. The show adds that Alwan claimed to be a star chemical engineer in Djerf al-Nadaf making mobile biological weapons. But, through an investigation it’s revealed that Alwan received poor grades in chemical engineering. He was also subject of arrest for an alleged theft from a TV production company he once worked for.

The show also quotes Tyler Drumheller, a former CIA senior official stating: “It was a guy trying to get his green card essentially, in Germany, and playing the system for what it was worth.”

The United States government had been warned at the time by German intelligence that there was no way they could verify and confirm the claims of Alwan. Regardless, Alwan’s information was used in a speech by Colin Powell who was the Secretary of State during that time.

It also said that the story came to life when the CIA confronted him with evidence that contradicts everything he had claimed when getting asylum. An investigation also lead to evidence that Alwan is a liar and an alcoholic.