-Caveat Lector- ------- Forwarded message follows -------
http://www.newscientist.com/news/print.jsp?id=ns99992974 NewScientist.com Russian gas may be secret crowd-control weapon 13:05 28 October 02 Debora MacKenzie The mystery gas used to end the hostage crisis at a Moscow theatre could be a secret crowd-control weapon, according to research by New Scientist. Such gases are known to be in development by governments who want "non-lethal" ways of dealing with civilians during conflicts. The gas knocked out the Chechen terrorists and led to the freeing of hundreds of hostages. But it killed all but two of the 117 hostages who died, and nearly all those freed remain in hospital. About 650 people are being treated, and observers fear further deaths and the possibility of permanent brain damage. The Russian authorities are still refusing to identify the gas it pumped into the theatre early on Saturday. The crisis began last Wednesday when 50 heavily armed Chechens took about 800 people hostage. Shots inside the building raised fears that the terrorists had begun executing the hostages shortly before the theatre was stormed. The terrorist demand for Russian troops to withdraw from Chechnya had not been met. The Chechens had planted bombs around the theatre and some had large packets of explosive strapped to their chests, ready to detonate if attacked. Security experts say this risk will have led the Russian forces to use the knock-out gas. Heavy price But rendering the hostage takers unconscious almost instantly appears to have come at a heavy price. The gas may have been developed as a non-lethal weapon, but the dose needed to incapacitate a young, fit terrorist would be fatal to those older and weaker, especially after three days in captivity. Weapons experts have suggested a 1950s chemical weapon called 3-quinuclidinyl benzilate, or BZ, may have been used. This causes disorientation and hallucinations and was tested by the US on servicemen in the 1960s. But according to Christopher Holstege of the University of Virginia, BZ takes an hour to start working and its effects peak at eight hours - whereas the Russian gas worked in seconds. Moreover, a hallucinogen seems a risky choice for terrorists strapped to bombs. But reports that the victims are pale and weak, with memory loss, and that doctors are treating them with the cholinergic drug physostigmine, suggest that the gas belongs to the same class of anti-cholinergic agents as BZ. The agents block some receptors for the neurotransmitter acetylcholine. This blocks the normal activity of the parasympathetic nervous system, causing higher heart rate and lack of sweating among many other symptoms. They also cross the blood-brain barrier blocking similar receptors in the brain, causing unconsciousness or disorientation, hallucinations and blocked memory formation. Physostigmine would not be used to treat the nerve gases sarin, tabun and soman, and Valium or related anti-anxiety drugs. "Law enforcement" Vil Mirzayanov, a former Soviet chemical weapons scientist turned campaigner, says the gas was a derivative of BZ developed by Russia during the Cold War. Such agents should have been destroyed by now under the Chemical Weapons Convention. But the CWC contains what campaigners call a loophole, which allows gases for "law enforcement". The continued Russian secrecy about the identity of the gas suggests it may well be a compound of military origin, rather than a medical anaesthetic. Affected hostages are not being allowed to leave the hospital and relatives cannot visit them, possibly to prevent blood samples being taken that would reveal the identity of the gas. 13:05 28 October 02 ------- End of forwarded message ------- -------------------------------------- Steve Wingate, Webmaster ANOMALOUS IMAGES AND UFO FILES http://www.anomalous-images.com Latest Update: Cydonia in 3-D http://www.anomalous-images.com/Odyssey/Cydonia_3-d.html <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html";>Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http://archive.jab.org/ctrl@;listserv.aol.com/ <A HREF="http://archive.jab.org/ctrl@;listserv.aol.com/">ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
