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Cheney Suspects bin Laden Behind US Anthrax Cases
US Vice President Dick Cheney indicated late on Friday in Washington that he would not be surprised if the anthrax cases recently detected in the United States could be linked to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network.
"We know that (bin Laden) has over the years tried to acquire weapons of mass destruction, both biological and chemical weapons, " Cheney told PBS television.
The cases of anthrax in Florida and New York are "suspicious" though there is not enough evidence to link them with bin Laden, he said.
The United States know Bin Laden's followers have been trained to deploy and use biological and chemical weapons, he added.
An employee of the US news network NBC News has tested positive for anthrax after handling "suspicious mail" that was sent to NBC's New York headquarters, network officials said Friday.
The anthrax is not the same with the respiratory anthrax that killed a man in Florida recently which is contracted through contact with the skin.
Three anthrax cases have already been found in Florida. Robert Stevens, a 63-year-old photo editor of the AMI American Media Inc., died of anthrax last week.
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