FBI Defends Assessment of Anthrax in Attacks
The FBI denied it overestimated the potency of the anthrax spores used in mailings that killed five people in 2001. The bureau also rejected a request for a classified briefing on the case from Rep. Rush D. Holt, D-N.J.
Shortly after the attacks, media reports said the spores contained additives and had been subjected to sophisticated milling -- both techniques used in anthrax-based weapons -- to make them more lethal.
Bureau officials said the early reports of weaponized anthrax were misconceptions, and the more recent reports misunderstood how early the FBI was able to accurately analyze the spores.
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