DU INFO BULLETIN NO 54

DU News
(1) Depleted Uranium May Pose Risk to Children
(2) Depleted Uranium Held Responsible for Down's Syndrome
in Iraq: Study

Veterans News
(3) France Opens Gulf War Syndrome Probe
(4) Britain recognizes Gulf War syndrome is real
(5)Uranium link to Gulf War Syndrome studied
(6)Depleted uranium detected at Kandahar airfield
(7) Anti- Squaline Antibodies link GWS to Anthrax Vaccine

Nuke News
(8) Wildfires burn in Chernobyl-affected parts of Belarus, raising radiation levels
(9)Vieques News

DU News
Depleted Uranium May Pose Risk to Children
Wed Jul 24, 2:23 PM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - Soil contaminated with debris from depleted uranium shells
could be putting children in the Balkans and the Gulf at an increased risk of
developing cancer and kidney damage, New Scientist magazine said on Wednesday.Youngsters who play in areas where the shells created clouds of uranium dust when they hit their targets are most endangered, according to Italian researchers. "The Italian team says that children living in areas of conflict that have beenbombarded with DU (depleted uranium) could get a dose of radiation above theinternationally recognized safety limit," the science weekly said.

Researchers from the University of Florence and the Tuscan Environment
Protection Agency (ARPAT) calculated that children could inhale a radiation dose from contaminated soil that would exceed safety levels set by the International Commission on Radiological Protection.
Swallowing contaminated soil would increase the risk further.

"In sites targeted by DU munitions, special measures have to be adopted to
reduce exposures," said Daniele Dominici, a physicist at the University of
Florence. Depleted uranium is used to harden the tips of armor-piercing shells. Others studies, including research from the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna, support the Italian findings. A report by Britain's Royal Society, an academy of leading scientists, said soldiers exposed to high levels of depleted uranium could suffer kidney damage and it could pose a risk to civilians through contaminated soil or water supplies.
It suggested topsoil in heavily contaminated areas should be removed and water quality monitored for any contamination.
Concerns about the health effects of DU arose last year after peacekeepers in
Bosnia and Kosovo said they had developed leukemia after exposure to the
material.
"Some 270 tons of DU have been spread over battlefields in the Gulf and the
Balkans during the last decade, the vast majority by U.S. forces," the magazine
added.
 http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20020724/sc_nm/health_depleted
uranium_dc_1


Depleted Uranium Held Responsible for Down's Syndrome
in Iraq: Study
People's Daily (China)
July 29, 2002


The depleted uranium left behind by Western allies
forces, not the advanced maternal age, should be
considered as the main cause of increasing cases of
Down's syndrome in Iraq, said a research report
published Sunday in the official Iraq Daily.

In the report titled "Depleted uranium and Down's
syndrome in offspring of mothers younger than 35-year
old," Iraqi doctor Tariq Al-Hilli said that among the
30 sampled patients with Down's syndrome, 17 of them,
or 56.6 percent, were infants of mothers under the age
of 35. The result indicated there was no significant
statistical association between advanced maternal age
and birth of babies with the congenital disorder.

It has been found that there is an increasing
incidence of congenital malformations among those
children who live in areas exposed to environmental
contamination by radioactive materials like depleted
uranium, the study said.

Iraq has repeatedly condemned the United States and
its Western allies for dropping hundreds of tons of
depleted uranium bombs in Iraq during the 1991 Gulf
War, triggered by Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in August
1990, and leading to an environmental disaster as a
result. Dr Al-Hilli said the sample was randomly selected from
those patients who went to the Saddam Central Teaching
Hospital during January 1 to July 31, 2000.

The study also included another 40 age-and-sex-matched
children who had no Down's syndrome as control cases,
he said. Down's syndrome, also called trisomy 21, is caused by
the presence of an extra 21st chromosome, and the
affected person has mild to moderate mental
retardation, short stature, and a flattenedfacial
profile. The disorder, formerly known as mongolism, was first
described by John L.H. Down, a British physician about
130 years ago and considered as the first syndrome
known to have a chromosomal cause.


VETERAN NEWS

France Opens Gulf War Syndrome Probe
ASSOCIATED PRESS
PARIS- France is investigating complaints by some
military veterans that their health has
deteriored due to Gulf War Syndrome, officials said
Friday.Prosecutors have been looking into such claims for the
past month, the judicial officials.
Christine Abdelkrim-Delanne, who co-founded a French
association fighting for recognition of the
illness, said the decision to investigate was "proof
the Paris prosecutor's office is taking our
affair seriously."

Abdelkrim-Delanne's organization, Avigolfe, counts 250
veterans who fell ill after serving in
the multinational force that fought against Iraq in
1991.
Scientists in the United States and elsewhere have not
been able to agree there is any such
thing as Gulf War Syndrome, the name given to a series
of disorders, including joint pain,
fatigue, nervous system problems and other maladies
reported by thousands of veterans.
In the United States, tens of thousands of vets - the
precise number is in dispute - returned
home with a variety of illnesses.
The U.S. government has acknowledged a serious health
problem exists but insist no single
illness is behind the syndrome. Some U.S. vets have
been frustrated with government research,
largely because early studies linked their problems to
battlefield stress.

Britain recognizes Gulf War syndrome is real
By Karen Birchard
LONDON - A British appeal tribunal has ruled that Gulf War
syndrome is real and was caused by active service during the
war.
Ministry of Defence doctors have maintained there was no such
sickness, meaning that thousands of soldiers were unable to
qualify for army pensions.
The case was taken by Gulf War veteran Shaun Rusling who
appealed the initial ruling to the pensions appeal tribunal nine
years ago. The ruling may have widespread and costly
implications for the British government. The Ministry of Defence
said it is studying the judgment.

The National Gulf Veterans and Families Association said this
ruling should help all Gulf War veterans who have been trying for
a pension for illness. James Moore, treasurer of the association
told BBC News: "This is very significant because the court has
now actually recognized there is a Gulf War illness, something
we have been saying for years."
In a statement, the association added: "It is now accepted in
legal terms that Gulf War syndrome exists and that the Ministry of
Defence has been actively trying to cover up the illness of Gulf
War syndrome and the serious health problems associated with
it.

"Veterans have been financially disadvantaged and had been
unable to work. Many families have been broken up and
marriages and health destroyed by further stress, and sadly
many veterans have committed suicide after being told by the
Ministry of Defence that Gulf War syndrome does not exist."

According to the association, many veterans had been
diagnosed by their own doctors as having Gulf War syndrome
but when they then applied for a pension they were turned down
by the government's war pensions agency.
 http://www.medicalpost.com/mdlink/english/members/medpost/data/3827/51B.HTM

Uranium link to Gulf War Syndrome studied [fredericksburg.com
BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) -- Researchers at Virginia Tech are again studying Gulf War Syndrome, trying to determine if the uranium used in high-tech ammunition, combined with battlefield stress, could cause nerve damage. Depleted uranium ammunition, used by U.S. and NATO forces against heavy-armor vehicles such as tanks, has been criticized in recent years by European officials who are concerned that the uranium may increase the risk of cancer in soldiers who come in close contact with the munitions or its residue. Several European soldiers who served in Kosovo with NATO forces have reportedly died of cancer, and American veterans groups have speculated whether depleted uranium could be causing some of the physical problems experienced by thousands of U.S. personnel who served in the Persian Gulf War. U.S. military officials and radiation experts have vehemently denied any link with cancer, saying that depleted uranium is far less radioactive than natural uranium and is not dangerous at the levels encountered by military personnel. Other critics, however, have suggested that depleted uranium may cause chemical poisoning in some circumstances. The Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine received more than $660,000 to study depleted uranium's chemical effect on the body during both short- and long-term exposure. The researchers will also introduce stress into the equation to see if the toxic effect is greater. Laboratory rats will be given doses of depleted uranium and then stressed by forced swimming. Researchers believe that stress may influence the body's reaction to chemicals in a variety of ways, including removing some of the natural barriers that block toxins from reaching the brain during times of low stress. Tens of thousands of Gulf War veterans have complained of illnesses, including memory loss, anxiety, fatigue, nausea, and chronic muscle and joint pain. Date published: Mon, 07/15/2002

Depleted uranium detected at Kandahar airfield, not likely dangerous says experts NAHLAH AYED KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (CP)
- An environmental survey has detected possible depleted uranium at the Kandahar airfield where Canadian soldiers have been stationed, but it's unlikely to pose a health risk, experts say. A recent U.S. survey and an earlier Canadian assessment of the environment here also discovered that asbestos is present on the base, where thousands of anti-terrorist coalition soldiers have lived for the past several months. The two surveys of the environment on this southern Afghan airbase also included a look at elevated noise levels, dust, and the effects of smoke from burning garbage on the air quality. The American team identified several small pieces of "an unknown metal substance suspected to be DU (depleted uranium)" but has yet to be confirmed by a laboratory. The substance was found in the remains of a burnt out aircraft away from living areas, said a spokeswoman for the team. "These pieces emitted a small radiation signature, which would have posed no threat to human health," said Maj. Annette Hildabrand. "Regardless, these pieces were collected and removed as a precautionary measure. The radiation readings returned to background levels immediately after removal. Therefore, no known radioactive material exists at Kandahar airfield." The Canadian team did not make a similar finding of depleted uranium, according to a representative in Ottawa. Depleted uranium is a byproduct of uranium and is about 40 per cent as radioactive. Because it is extremely dense, it is used on the tips of ammunition to help it pierce armoured vehicles. It can also be used in solid form to balance an aircraft. Because it is a heavy metal, it can pose health risks both as a chemical poison and a radiation hazard. But experts disagree about the extent of its adverse health effects. If unfired, or if found in a solid state as it was in Kandahar, the metal poses little health risk because it emits little radiation, experts say. But once it penetrates armour, depleted uranium particles can become airborne and can easily enter the human body. Canadian soldiers wear detectors to keep track of any exposure to radiation. At this point, there is no reason for Canadian soldiers who have served in Kandahar to worry about the effects of depleted uranium, said Maj. Rod Keller, of 12 Field Squadron of 1 Combat Engineer Regiment. "When our team came through, at that time they did not find depleted uranium anywhere where the Canadians were either living or working," he said. Keller said he was informed by the American safety officer that the depleted uranium that was discovered here was "extremely isolated" and "you would have had to either ingest a hunk of this or somehow put it into your system" before it posed any health risk. The U.S. safety officer has left Kandahar and was not available for comment. Depleted uranium became a concern a couple of years ago after the death of Capt. Terry Riordon, a Canadian Gulf War veteran. An autopsy showed a high level of the radioactive substance in his body. His wife has been advocating that the federal government impose testing for depleted uranium on any soldiers involved in the fight against terrorism.  http://www.southam.com/ottawacitizen/newsnow/cpfs/world/020717/w07 1769.html

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Anti- Squaline Antibodies link GWS to Anthrax Vaccine
 http://www.autoimmune.com/GWSGen.html
Data published in the February 2000 and August 2002 issues of Experimental and Molecular Pathology strongly suggests that Gulf War Syndrome is caused by a vaccine contaminated with squalene.
The August 2002 article is entitled "Antibodies to Squalene in Recipients of Anthrax Vaccine" (Exp. Mol. Pathol. 73,19-27 (2002)).
Gulf War Syndrome, or GWS, is the term which has been applied to the multi-symptom rheumatic disorder experienced by many veterans of the 1990-1991 Persian Gulf war. A similar disorder appeared in 1990-1991-era personnel who were never deployed to the Persian Gulf theater of operations and also in other military personnel, including participants in the Anthrax Vaccine Immunization Program, or AVIP, which was inaugurated in 1997. No data has ever suggested that the disorder experienced by the deployed 1990-1991 soldiers is different from the disorder experienced by the other groups of patients, but the other cases have not been considered to be cases of GWS.
Squalene was found by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in five lots of the AVIP anthrax vaccine. The discovery of serum anti-squalene antibodies and the development of a test to detect these antibodies has made it possible to see that links appear to exist between the contaminated AVIP vaccine lots, the illness experienced by post-1997 vaccine recipients, the illness experienced by non-deployed 1990-1991-era patients, and the illness in deployed 1990-1991-era patients that has been referred to as GWS.
The data establishing these links is presented in the peer-reviewed February 2000 and August 2002 articles. The published findings (1) strongly suggest that the GWS-like illness being reported by all of the various patient groups is the same illness, (2) strongly suggest that the contaminated vaccine caused the illness in the AVIP group, and (3) further suggest that squalene contamination of one or more 1990-1991-era vaccines accounts for the GWS cases from that era.

-
NUKE NEWS
Wildfires burn in Chernobyl-affected parts of Belarus, raising radiation levels Tue Jul 16, 1:37 PM ET MINSK, Belarus –
Dozens of wildfires are burning in parts of Belarus that were worst affected by the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, raising radiation levels in the area, officials said Tuesday. At least 30 peat fires and 11 forest fires are burning in the Gomel and Brest regions of Belarus, according to the country's emergency situations ministry. The regions absorbed much of the fallout from the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear accident, when a reactor in nearby Ukraine exploded and caught fire, sending a cloud of radiation over Europe. Belarusian Emergency Minister Valery Astapov said radiation levels in the fire zone are elevated, though he did not say by how much. In one town in the Gomel region, people are staying indoors and keeping their windows closed to keep out the smoke, local authorities said. One fire in the Brest region is burning 300 hectares (741 acres), another is burning 800 hectares (1,976 acres), the emergency ministry said. Some 4,000 people are trying to put out the fires in the Gomel region. Belarus, a former Soviet republic, is still struggling to recover from the aftermath of the Chernobyl disaster. The country's authoritarian president, Alexander Lukashenko, has sought closer union with Russia to improve the country's moribund economy.
 http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/




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Solidarity with Vieques

A CALL TO ACTION FOR PEACE ON VIEQUES
July 23, 2002
Warm greetings from the Island of Vieques, Puerto Rico. The Committee for the Rescue and Development of Vieques (CRDV), together with other groups in Vieques and on the big island of Puerto Rico, work out last details for the peaceful civil disobedience actions that will take place if and when the next bombing begins. In the middle of speculations about the possible withdrawal from Vieques of the U.S. Navy, and despite numerous indications - such as the report by the Center for Naval Analysis already in the hands of Navy Secretary England - that more appropriate sites for military exercises already exist, the Navy is continuing with construction projects and other preparations for a new round of bombing in Vieques during the second half of August and/or September. It is our duty to try to stop this bombing, which is responsible for the environmental and health crises that have been killing our people for more than sixty years. One week before bombing begins military personnel will place at the local Post Office a warning to fishermen and other operators of small boats about dangerous and restricted zones, also indicating days and hours of military exercises. With this information we will have a clearer idea of the bombing calendar and, thereby, a clearer idea of our schedule of operations. During those days, we will be coordinating a series of protest actions and denunciations in Puerto Rico, in the US and in countries where there are friends of Vieques. We know the forces for peace in our world possess great creativity and capacity to develop protest actions that will have impact and raise consciousness. Again we appeal to that creativity and solidarity to carry out actions for peace on Vieques during the days when the US Navy continues to bomb our island.
Committee for the Rescue and Development of Vieques PO Box 1424 Vieques, Puerto Rico 00765 Tel. (787) 741-0716 Fax (787)741-0358 E-mail:  oficina@prorescatevieques.org

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