Report claims 9/11 victims' cremated remains were dumped in landfill

Washington, Feb 29 (ANI): The remains of some of the victims of the 9/11 terror attacks were incinerated and dumped in a landfill, a new Pentagon report has revealed.

The US Defense Department report revealed that that "several portions of remains" recovered from the Pentagon and Shanksville 'could not be tested or identified,' apparently because they were too small or charred to allow for DNA analysis.

The remains were cremated and then mixed with biomedical waste at the Dover Air Force Base mortuary, where they were given to a contractor who incinerated them and dumped the residue in a landfill, The Washington Post reports.

The report, released on Tuesday after an investigation led by retired Army Gen. John P. Abizaid, cited Army and Air Force memos from July and August 2002 directing that an unspecified number of "remains from the Attack on the Pentagon" be incinerated.

The report indicated that unidentified remains from the hijacking of United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed in Shanksville, were disposed of in a similar manner.

But the Pennsylvania coroner who oversaw the handling of remains from that attack said no body parts from Shanksville were ever sent to Dover or taken to a landfill.

According to the paper, Abizaid's report lists several previously undisclosed incidents of mismanagement, mishandled body parts and other botched cases at the Dover mortuary.

Meanwhile, the White House issued a statement saying it was "deeply concerned" about the landfill disposals and about "the unacceptable handling of remains at Dover."

The statement said President Barack Obama had been briefed about Abizaid's review and that he "strongly supports the Pentagon's efforts to make needed systemic structural changes so that these types of incidents never happen again." (ANI)