
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, June 13, 1993                   TAG: 9306140065
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-9   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: NEW YORK                                LENGTH: Medium

U.N. PROBES SAFETY OF URANIUM LITTER DEPLETED AMMUNITION LEFT IN GULF

The United Nations has quietly begun an inquiry into possible health threats to Iraqi and Kuwaiti civilians from uranium-loaded U.S. ammunition littering the old Gulf War zone, The Associated Press has learned.

The new interest by the U.N. Environment Program comes as Congress is investigating whether American soldiers in the 1991 conflict were harmed by the toxic, slightly radioactive dust from tank and aircraft cannon rounds made of depleted uranium.

The heavy metal, as dart-shaped cannon projectiles, penetrates enemy tank armor better than any other material.

The Pentagon says testing of soldiers for exposure to uranium has detected no contamination, and ill effects are unlikely for civilians living near the battlefronts of the U.S.-Iraqi tank war.

Some critics contend the depleted uranium remnants in Iraq and Kuwait pose an undeniable danger.

"We're basically dumping our nuclear waste around battlefields of the world. Is this something we want to do?" asked Eric Hoskins, a Canadian physician who does humanitarian work in Iraq.

Britain's Atomic Energy Authority first sounded an alarm about depleted uranium immediately after the war. It estimated at least 40 tons of the material was left behind and called it a "significant problem."

Hoskins said Iraqi doctors tell him more and more children are developing unexplained diseases in southern Iraq, and he speculates the ailments may be linked to uranium contamination. But "it's going to be difficult to prove," he said.

For the moment, the World Health Organization backs up the Pentagon.

Documents obtained by the AP show that, when queried by Environment Program officials, the U.N. health body said it doubted the depleted uranium was a hazard. The WHO noted, however, "we do not have specific information" about the Persian Gulf situation.

Yuri Ryabukhin, a toxicologist at WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, said in an interview that only an on-site investigation could provide definitive answers.

The uncertainties stem in part from the munitions' relative newness. U.S. Army experts, under congressional orders, are currently wrapping up a five-month study reassessing the handling of "DU" ammunition, and are expected to propose improved controls.

by CNB