Biggest arms cache found

BRITISH troops have uncovered the biggest arms find of the war - including weapons that can be used for a chemical attack.

Some 50,000 tonnes of shells, rockets and other explosives were found in 21 bunkers near Amara in central Iraq after a local man approached soldiers from 3 Regiment Army Air Corps camped at a nearby airfield.

An RAF bomb squad is clearing the munitions from the rural site which covers more than three square miles.

The bunkers had been targeted by laser-guided Paveway bombs from allied forces but only two buildings appeared to be completely destroyed, leaving unexploded ordnance strewn across a huge area.

Bomb disposal expert Sgt Tommy Tomizcek, 39, from 5131 Squadron, said of the artillery uncovered: "I'm not a land service ordnance expert but I've never seen one like that before. Any of these shells could be used for chemical weapons."

. This is a pooled dispatch by a reporter for the Evening Star, Ipswich.

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