Post by Mech on Apr 29, 2004 21:38:51 GMT -5
U.S. Use of Depleted Uranium Weapons Causes Dangerous Rise in Radiation Level in Iraq
TEHRAN (MNA) – Canadian research centers have reported that during the war against Iraq the U.S. military used depleted uranium (DU) weapons which caused the radiation level to rise at least 300 times above normal, and the weapons caused similar effects in Afghanistan.
U.S. troops have recently begun removing contaminated topsoil in Iraq, taking it to an unknown location.
Scientists believe the next generation of children of citizens of both countries exposed to DU will suffer from higher rates of birth defects and cancer.
The Uranium Medical Research Centre (UMRC) issued a report based on a 13-day survey throughout the primary conflict zones in urban and rural areas of central and southern Iraq on October 2003, according to Risq News.
The team performed radiation surveys, nuclide analysis, interviewed civilians and community leaders, collected biological and field samples, and investigated the possible health effects of depleted uranium contamination on Iraqi civilians.
According to the report, the U.S. has used uranium oxide deposits as strong explosives in common and fire bombs.
The most disturbing circumstance was observed in the U.S. occupied base in southwestern Baghdad in the Auweirj district. It is close to the international airport and hosts one of the largest coalition bases around Baghdad, occupying the operational headquarters of the Iraqi Special Republican Guard. The area was subject to considerable aerial bombing and rocket fire prior to the coalition ground forces' arrival followed by several ground skirmishes along the main routes to the international airport and western entrances to the city.
Departing the coalition-occupied base was a long, a steady stream of tandem-axle dump trucks carrying full loads of sand, heading south away from the city. Returning from the south was a second stream of fully loaded dump trucks waiting to enter the base. As the team passed the base’s main entrance, the gates were opened to reveal bulldozers spreading soil while front-end loaders were filling the trucks that had just emptied their loads of soil (silt and sand). The arriving trucks were delivering loads of sand into the base while the departing trucks were hauling away the base’s topsoil.
The method of topsoil removal and replacement at U.S.-occupied bases, living facilities, and administrative buildings is mechanically resuspending tons of potentially contaminated particulate. The dust clouds are lofting above and spreading over the entire area -- 5,000,000 residents in Baghdad alone. It is also exposing thousands of U.S. military personnel and the many frequent foreign visitors including NGO staff, reconstruction crews, business and trade delegates, and diplomatic and foreign service employees.
It’s not just UMRC that has reported the high level of radiation in Iraq, many American journalists and researchers have also confirmed the reports.
The situation in Afghanistan is worse, with tests showing even higher levels of radiation than Iraq.
Soldiers in Desert Storm (Persian Gulf War I) knew the danger of uranium toxicity from U.S. and British ordnance, and many believe that Gulf War syndrome is caused by exposure to depleted uranium.
At a recent international conference on uranium contaminated weapons held in Hamburg, Germany, researchers and witnesses from the U.S., Britain, Canada, Italy, Japan, Greece, Spain, Iraq, and Afghanistan presented various types of undeniable evidence and documents to illustrate the connection between depleted uranium and Gulf War syndrome.
TEHRAN (MNA) – Canadian research centers have reported that during the war against Iraq the U.S. military used depleted uranium (DU) weapons which caused the radiation level to rise at least 300 times above normal, and the weapons caused similar effects in Afghanistan.
U.S. troops have recently begun removing contaminated topsoil in Iraq, taking it to an unknown location.
Scientists believe the next generation of children of citizens of both countries exposed to DU will suffer from higher rates of birth defects and cancer.
The Uranium Medical Research Centre (UMRC) issued a report based on a 13-day survey throughout the primary conflict zones in urban and rural areas of central and southern Iraq on October 2003, according to Risq News.
The team performed radiation surveys, nuclide analysis, interviewed civilians and community leaders, collected biological and field samples, and investigated the possible health effects of depleted uranium contamination on Iraqi civilians.
According to the report, the U.S. has used uranium oxide deposits as strong explosives in common and fire bombs.
The most disturbing circumstance was observed in the U.S. occupied base in southwestern Baghdad in the Auweirj district. It is close to the international airport and hosts one of the largest coalition bases around Baghdad, occupying the operational headquarters of the Iraqi Special Republican Guard. The area was subject to considerable aerial bombing and rocket fire prior to the coalition ground forces' arrival followed by several ground skirmishes along the main routes to the international airport and western entrances to the city.
Departing the coalition-occupied base was a long, a steady stream of tandem-axle dump trucks carrying full loads of sand, heading south away from the city. Returning from the south was a second stream of fully loaded dump trucks waiting to enter the base. As the team passed the base’s main entrance, the gates were opened to reveal bulldozers spreading soil while front-end loaders were filling the trucks that had just emptied their loads of soil (silt and sand). The arriving trucks were delivering loads of sand into the base while the departing trucks were hauling away the base’s topsoil.
The method of topsoil removal and replacement at U.S.-occupied bases, living facilities, and administrative buildings is mechanically resuspending tons of potentially contaminated particulate. The dust clouds are lofting above and spreading over the entire area -- 5,000,000 residents in Baghdad alone. It is also exposing thousands of U.S. military personnel and the many frequent foreign visitors including NGO staff, reconstruction crews, business and trade delegates, and diplomatic and foreign service employees.
It’s not just UMRC that has reported the high level of radiation in Iraq, many American journalists and researchers have also confirmed the reports.
The situation in Afghanistan is worse, with tests showing even higher levels of radiation than Iraq.
Soldiers in Desert Storm (Persian Gulf War I) knew the danger of uranium toxicity from U.S. and British ordnance, and many believe that Gulf War syndrome is caused by exposure to depleted uranium.
At a recent international conference on uranium contaminated weapons held in Hamburg, Germany, researchers and witnesses from the U.S., Britain, Canada, Italy, Japan, Greece, Spain, Iraq, and Afghanistan presented various types of undeniable evidence and documents to illustrate the connection between depleted uranium and Gulf War syndrome.