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Depleted uranium shells controversial in two wars
By Louis Porter
Staff Writer
April 20, 2003
The United States and its allies have used thousands of rounds of depleted uranium shells in the current war against Iraq, according to published reports, despite lingering controversy about the role the shells may have played in the suite of illnesses suffered by veterans of the first Gulf War.
Even those who want to ban depleted uranium, because they believe it causes illness, call the weapons made from it \"awesome\" and \"fantastic.\"
Soldiers call it the \"silver bullet.\"
During a briefing last month, Col. Jim Naughton, director of munitions for the U.S. Army's Materiel Command, said rounds made of depleted uranium allow U.S. troops to hit Iraqi targets while remaining out of range of the Iraqis.
\"That's how much advantage it gives us,\" Naughton said.
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That advantage is not reason enough to use the shells, said Doug Rokke, a major in the U.S. Army Reserve from Rantoul, Ill., and a veteran of the Vietnam and first Gulf wars.
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Depleted uranium is a heavy metal, so dense that the 320 tons of it used in the first Gulf War could be compressed into a 8-foot cube. It is also tougher than tungsten and penetrates buildings and armor-plated vehicles.
But when it explodes and burns on impact it raises smoke and dust, which some say makes the weapons dangerous to U.S. troops and Iraqi civilians.
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U.S. defense officials said last month it was impossible to use the Abram tank and other vehicles without using depleted uranium shells, and the Defense and Veterans Affairs departments have argued that studies show depleted uranium is not a serious hazard to U.S. soldiers or Iraqis.
However, The Royal Society, England's leading scientific institution, last week called on Britain and the United States to clean up the munitions after the current war.
\"A small number of soldiers might suffer kidney damage and an increased risk of lung cancer if substantial amounts of depleted uranium are breathed in,\" said Professor Brian Spratt in a statement.
Civilians might also be at risk from depleted uranium entering the water supply, he said.
When a depleted uranium shell explodes in a tank, or a U.S. tank plated with the ultra-hard metal, is hit with a shell it can be filled and covered with dust and smoke from the uranium munitions, which linger for a long time, veterans advocates said.
Rokke doubts whether it is even possible to clean it up after a war, he said.
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By Louis Porter
Staff Writer
April 20, 2003
The United States and its allies have used thousands of rounds of depleted uranium shells in the current war against Iraq, according to published reports, despite lingering controversy about the role the shells may have played in the suite of illnesses suffered by veterans of the first Gulf War.
Even those who want to ban depleted uranium, because they believe it causes illness, call the weapons made from it \"awesome\" and \"fantastic.\"
Soldiers call it the \"silver bullet.\"
During a briefing last month, Col. Jim Naughton, director of munitions for the U.S. Army's Materiel Command, said rounds made of depleted uranium allow U.S. troops to hit Iraqi targets while remaining out of range of the Iraqis.
\"That's how much advantage it gives us,\" Naughton said.
....
That advantage is not reason enough to use the shells, said Doug Rokke, a major in the U.S. Army Reserve from Rantoul, Ill., and a veteran of the Vietnam and first Gulf wars.
....
Depleted uranium is a heavy metal, so dense that the 320 tons of it used in the first Gulf War could be compressed into a 8-foot cube. It is also tougher than tungsten and penetrates buildings and armor-plated vehicles.
But when it explodes and burns on impact it raises smoke and dust, which some say makes the weapons dangerous to U.S. troops and Iraqi civilians.
....
U.S. defense officials said last month it was impossible to use the Abram tank and other vehicles without using depleted uranium shells, and the Defense and Veterans Affairs departments have argued that studies show depleted uranium is not a serious hazard to U.S. soldiers or Iraqis.
However, The Royal Society, England's leading scientific institution, last week called on Britain and the United States to clean up the munitions after the current war.
\"A small number of soldiers might suffer kidney damage and an increased risk of lung cancer if substantial amounts of depleted uranium are breathed in,\" said Professor Brian Spratt in a statement.
Civilians might also be at risk from depleted uranium entering the water supply, he said.
When a depleted uranium shell explodes in a tank, or a U.S. tank plated with the ultra-hard metal, is hit with a shell it can be filled and covered with dust and smoke from the uranium munitions, which linger for a long time, veterans advocates said.
Rokke doubts whether it is even possible to clean it up after a war, he said.
....