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NEW
evidence that Gulf war syndrome exists and was caused
by radiation poisoning will be revealed today by a former
American army colonel who was at the centre of his government's
attempts to diagnose the illness.
Dr
Asaf Durakovic will tell a conference of eminent nuclear
scientists in Paris that "tens of thousands"
of British and American soldiers are dying from radiation
from depleted uranium (DU) shells fired during the Gulf
war.
The
findings will undermine the British and American governments'
claims that Gulf war syndrome does not exist and intensify
pressure from veterans on both sides of the Atlantic for
compensation.
Durakovic,
who is professor of nuclear medicine at Georgetown University,
Washington, and the former head of nuclear medicine at
the US Army's veterans' affairs medical facility in Delaware,
will tell the conference that he and his team of American
and Canadian scientists have discovered life-threateningly
high levels of DU in Gulf veterans 10 years after the
desert war.
His
findings, which have been verified by four independent
experts, is embarrassing for the Ministry of Defence (MoD)
and American Defence Department, which have consistently
refused to test Gulf war veterans for DU.
Durakovic
will tell the European Association of Nuclear Medicine
that tests on 17 veterans have shown DU in the urine and
bones of 70% of them.
Depleted
uranium does not occur naturally. It is the by-product
of the industrial processing of waste from nuclear reactors
and is better known as weapons-grade uranium. It is used
to strengthen the tips of shells to ensure that they pierce
armour.
Durakovic,
who left America because he was told his life was in danger
if he continued his research, has concluded that troops
inhaled the tiny uranium particles after American and
British forces fired more than 700,000 DU shells during
the conflict.
The
finding begins to explain for the first time why medical
orderlies and mechanics are the principal victims of Gulf
war syndrome.
British
Army engineers who removed tanks hit by DU shells from
the battlefield and medical personnel who cut off the
clothes of Iraqi casualties in field hospitals have been
disproportionately affected.
Once
inside the body, DU causes a slow death from cancers,
irreversible kidney damage or wastage from immune deficiency
disorders.
In
the UK, where more than 400 veterans are estimated to
have died from "Gulf war syndrome", at least
50 of those victims came from Reme (Royal Electrical and
Mechanical Engineers) units. Others, such as Ray Bristow,
42, of Hull, who was a theatre technician for 32 Field
Hospital, are now wheelchair-bound.
Tests
carried out by Durakovic on Bristow showed that, nine
years after leaving the Gulf, he had more than 100 times
the safe limit of DU in his body.
Durakovic
said: "I doubt whether the MoD or Pentagon will have
the audacity to challenge these results. I can't say this
is the solitary cause of Gulf war syndrome, but we now
have clear evidence that it is a leading factor in the
majority of victims.
"I
hope the US and UK governments finally realise that, by
continuing to use this ammunition, they are effectively
poisoning their own soldiers."
An
MoD spokesman said it would study any new evidence: "Our
aim is to get the best care for British veterans and our
views are based on the best evidence around."
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