In an operation which lasted several hours, the US forces uncovered dozens of Kalashnikov assault rifles, grenades, mortars, hundreds of rounds of ammunition and even a World War I vintage rifle in different parts of the factory complex.

The marines also found several chemical protection suits, which might be expected in this type of plant, but decided to call in experts to determine their function.

On Saturday marines had found in Nasiriyah some 800 grenadas, more than 15,000 rounds of rifle and machine-gun ammunition, mines, 300 mortar bombs of different calibres and artillery shells, the Qatar-based US Central Command said.

In a separate raid the same day, US-British Coalition spokesmen in the Gulf also said that marines had discovered more than 300 chemical protection suits, as many gas masks, plus doses of atropine, an antidote for mustard gas, and decontamination vehicles in an operation at Nasiriyah.

But so far the coalition forces have come across none of the chemical and biological weapons whose alleged possession by Iraq was a key reason for their invasion.

SPACE.WIRE