US ammunition blamed for Iraqi cancer hike - 12 Oct 09

Doctors in Iraq are recording a shocking rise in the number of cancer victims south of Baghdad. Sufferers in the province of Babil have risen by almost tenfold in just three years.

Locals blame depleted uranium from US military equipment used in the 2003 invasion. These cancer cases have spread fears among the locals, prompting them to demand an investigation.

In this part of Iraq, 500 cases of cancer were diagnosed in 2004. That figure rose to almost 1,000 two years later.

In 2008, the number of cases increased sevenfold to 7,000 diagnoses. This year, there have so far been more than 9,000 new cases ... and the number is rising.

Al Jazeera's Mosab Jasim has been investigating.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• iraq
• cancer
• ammunition
• uranium
• babil
• mosab
• jasim
• aljazeera