hidden away on page 8 of the Independent, Wed. 8 Feb 04:

'Pension for illness linked to Gulf War shells'

“A soldier who moved Iraqi tanks hit by depleted uranium shells in the 1991 Gulf War has become the first to win a war pension appeal for exposure to the material. The Pension Appeal Tribunal Service said the ill-health of Kenny Duncan, of Clackmannanshire, was due to the work. The National Gulf Veterans and Families Association said the verdict added weight to calls for an inquiry into war illneses.”

and...

John Pilger reporting the effects of DU on the civilian population of Iraq after Gulf War I in 1991

“After the Gulf war Iraq was not allowed the equipment to clean up its battlefields. More than 1 million rounds of weapons coated in depleted uranium (basically nuclear waste) were used by the allies during the war. As much as 300 tonnes of expended DU ammunition now lies scattered throughout Kuwait and Iraq. Depleted uranium dust gets into the food chain via water and the soil. It can be ingested and inhaled. Prolonged internal exposure leads to respiratory diseases, breakdown of the immune system, leukaemia, lung cancer and bone cancer. Cases of cancers in Iraq have risen tenfold since 1990. If cancers continue on the present upward curve, 44 per cent of the population could develop cancer within ten years.”

For more go here:  http://pilger.carlton.com/iraq/rokke