A truck carrying nitric acid and explosives attempted to crash into a joint US/Iraqi security station yesterday. The truck overturned before reaching the base.

The use of nitric acid, a corrosive substance that can cause severe burns, signals an escalation in the improvised chemical weapons arsenal that has been deployed in Iraq. Past attempts to use degraded artillery shells filled with Sarin, and more recently tanker trucks filled with chlorine, did not result in extensive, long-lasting effects.