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Depleted uranium is used in armour-piercing shells
(BBC) | |
Britain is to test thousands of veterans of the 1991 Gulf War who have
suffered a range of unexplained ailments for the possible presence of
depleted uranium in their
bodies, a report said.
Four clinics will undertake the tests in a attempt to explain so-called
Gulf War Syndrome.
Both British and US forces in the conflict used armour-piercing shells
tipped with depleted uranium, and veterans' groups have long argued that
radioactive dust from the shells could have caused illnesses.
However previous British tests have failed to establish a link,
although some of the research has been condemned as unreliable.
Britain's Ministry of Defence is set to announce the establishment of
four specialist screening centres where Gulf veterans, as well as soldiers
who served in the 1999 Kosovo war, where the uranium shells were also
used, can be properly tested.
David Coggan, the scientist
overseeing the programme, told reporters that the new
tests would be able to detect any amounts of depleted uranium in veterans'
urine sufficient to cause ill-health.
The tests would be sufficiently "sensitive and accurate" to uncover
even "tiny traces" of uranium, he said.
Around 5,000 British troops have complained of experiencing a range of
mysterious maladies after taking part in the Gulf War, in which British
troops joined a US-led campaign to liberate Kuwait, invaded the previous
August by Saddam Hussein's Iraq.
Common symptoms -- also reported by many American veterans -- include
neurological problems,
headaches, depression, weakness, joint and muscle pain, rashes and
shortness of breath.
Veterans' groups have slammed the British government's response to the
situation as insufficient and demanded a public
inquiry.
(Agencies) |
一項報告表明，英國政府打算對數千名參加過1991年海灣戰爭的老兵進行檢查。他們受到一系列莫名其妙的疾病的折磨，這可能與他們體內可能存在的貧鈾有關。
四家診所將負責這次檢查，試圖解釋所謂的海灣戰爭綜合癥。
在海灣戰爭中，英國軍隊和美國軍隊都使用了貧鈾穿甲彈，老兵組織一直認為從炮彈里滲漏出的放射性灰塵可能會引發疾病。
但是英國政府早些時候的檢查并沒有發現貧鈾和疾病之間的聯系，盡管一些研究被譴責是不可靠的。
英國國防部計劃宣布成立四個專家檢查中心，參加海灣戰爭的老兵們和參加過1999年科索沃戰爭的士兵們可以在這里接受全面的檢查。科索沃戰爭中同樣也使用了這種貧鈾炮彈。
大衛·科根是負責該項目的科學家，他告訴記者說這項新的檢查能夠檢測出老兵尿液中任何劑量能致病的貧鈾。
他說，這個檢查非常“靈敏準確”，它能檢測出“非常微量的”鈾。
大約5000名英國士兵在參加了海灣戰爭后抱怨說他們得了一系列莫名其妙的疾病。1990年8月，薩達姆·侯賽因領導下的伊拉克入侵科威特，英國軍隊加入了以美國為首的聯軍去解放科威特。
該疾病的普遍癥狀包括神經問題、頭痛、憂郁、虛弱、關節和肌肉疼痛、皮疹、呼吸短促。很多美國老兵也反映有同樣的癥狀。
老兵組織抨擊英國政府對該事件重視不夠，并要求進行公眾調查。
（中國日報網站譯） |
Updated: 2004-09-27 10:22