Here's something to remember

I'm here to talk about the Gulf War and the Depleted Uranium Effect, so for a starter:
"To be exposed to radiation from uranium, you have to eat, drink, or breathe it, or get it on your skin."

I don't know why but I really want to talk about this issue, that has been long, long forgotten.
I don't know why do we, Egyptians, hate Iraqi people that much, if it's for something then it's because we're shallow and could never be more superficial. How can you even say these words "ya 3am da America 7alal feehom"..? I mean..what?? Are you by any means serious?
Okay here's a thing: We're on the borders with Palestine..when was the last time we sent them aids? Did we ever try? Look at what people are calling us. Karma is always there you know!
Let's take this Iraqi issue as briefly as possible :
1-Effect of Uranium:
Normal functioning of the kidney, brain, liver, heart, and numerous other systems can be affected by uranium exposure, because in addition to being weakly radioactive, uranium is a toxic metal.
That's in addition to causing cancer, vomiting, diarrhea, albuminuria, chronic fatigue, rash, ear and eye infections, hair and weight loss, cough. May be due to combined chemical exposure rather than DU alone.
Worst of all: DU remains radioactive for about 4.5 billion years.

2-Consequences of the war:
  • On May 2002, 159,238 veterans have been awarded service-connected disability by the Department of Veterans Affairs for health effects collectively known as the Gulf War Syndrome.
  • There were photos of infants born without brains, with their internal organs outside their bodies, without sexual organs, without spines, and the list of deformities went on and on. There also were photos of cancer patients.

Take a look..
  • Cancer has increased dramatically in southern Iraq. In 1988, 34 people died of cancer; in 1998, 450 died of cancer; in 2001 there were 603 cancer deaths. Boys and girls were suffering from leukemia. Most of the children die, the doctors said, because there are insufficient drugs available for their treatment.
3- Geneva Convention and International Humanitarian Law:

  • The fourth Geneva Convention affords protection to civilians, including in occupied territory.
(The bulk of the Convention deals with the status and treatment of protected persons, distinguishing between the situation of foreigners on the territory of one of the parties to the conflict and that of civilians in occupied territory. It spells out the obligations of the Occupying Power vis-à-vis the civilian population and contains detailed provisions on humanitarian relief for populations in occupied territory)

International Humanitarian Law:
  • A lawyer with the International Educational Development/Humanitarian Law Project said: there are four rules derived from all of humanitarian law regarding weapons:
  1. Weapons may only be used in the legal field of battle, defined as legal military targets of the enemy in war. Weapons may not have an adverse effect off the legal field of battle.
  2. Weapons can only be used for the duration of an armed conflict. A weapon that is used or continues to act after the war is over violates this criterion.
  3. Weapons may not be unduly inhumane.
  4. Weapons may not have an unduly negative effect on the natural environment.

"Depleted uranium fails all four of these rules."



And here is the map of the places of DU testing, victims and misuse.
And lastly:
  • "The cause of all of these cancers and deformities remains theoretical because we can't confirm the presence of uranium in tissue or urine with the equipment we have." Said a British-trained oncologist in Iraq.
So do you really want to remember something? There are a thousand forgotten casualties on our Earth.

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