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SCUD Missiles

According to some accounts, Iraq established a major expeditionary force in Sudan in order to strike Egypt and western Saudi Arabia. In late August 1990, the Iraqi deployment was said to include 14 SCUD-B launchers with several missiles each that were originally deployed along the Red Sea coast across from Yanbu and Jeddah. In early January 1991, the Iraqis were said to have delivered additional SCUD launchers to the armed forces of Sudan, which deployed these launchers in northern Sudan. These SCUDs targeted southern Egypt, including the Aswan High Dam. It is reported that in 1995 Sudan requested Russian spares and expert technicians to fix its own SCUD missiles and other sub-systems. It is reported that the serial numbers and other technical data provided by Khartoum proves that the Sudanese SCUD systems had been sold originally to Iraq.

According to some accounts, in March/April 1991, Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz requested and was granted permission from Sudan's President Umar al-Bashir to move Iraqi chemical weapons and additional SCUD missiles to Sudan in order to circumvent their destruction by the United Nations. Thus, in the summer of 1991, as UN inspections became inevitable, Iraq was said to have transferred a large number of SCUDs, estimated at about 400 missiles, and chemical weapons, for "safekeeping" in Yemen and Sudan. Soon afterwards, with Saudi pressure on Yemen growing, the Iraqi ballistic missiles were said to have been shipped from Yemen to Sudan. However, it should be noted that these reports are highly suspect, since the estimated number of 400 missiles is entirely inconsistent with all other accountings of Iraqi missile inventories.

In the later part of 1995 it is claimed that Iraq deployed to Sudan some 50 "advanced SCUD launchers" and a similar number of al-Hussayn missiles. In October 1995, Iranian and Iraqi engineers, including some missile experts, were said to be upgrading an old airfield in East Sudan for the arrival and storage of additional strategic weapons from Iraq. It is claimed that the majority of the Iraqi SCUD-type missiles were stored in a well-protected and well concealed site within the Port Sudan military compound in late 1997/early 1998.

As of early 1998, according to the National Air Intelligence Center, Sudan did not possess any SCUD or similar missiles.

In late 1999 it was reported that a US intelligence agency reported that North Korea had offered to sell Sudan a factory for assembling SCUD missiles. Other reports suggest that in early 2000 a delegation of North Korean technical experts and a military research mission from Baghdad met in Khartoum. With $475 million in Iraqi financing, North Korea is said to be building a missile plant near Khartoum. Although most of this sum would go to North Korea for turnkey construction and facility staffing, Sudan would receive some payment for supporting and hosting the operation. The facility would enable Iraq to refurbish the old missiles stored in Sudan, and to build new longer-range missiles.

Sources and Resources



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