Russell Powell, a former staff sergeant of the West Virginia Army National Guard, explains the thick orange powder, now known to be the highly toxic chemical sodium dichromate, he was exposed to at the Qarmat Ali water injection facility in Iraq. (0:20)
By Courtney Ann Jackson-Talk Radio News Service
Exposure to a toxic substance at a water injection facility in Iraq has left U.S. soldiers in deteriorating health. The U.S. Senate Democratic Policy Committee conducted a hearing Monday to investigate what some Senators would describe as the Army’s lackluster response.
“The Army failed to provide proper oversight over KBR’s [military contractor Kellogg, Brown and Root] contract provisions that called for the contractor to identify, prevent and mitigate environmental hazards so as to protect the health and safety of workers and U.S. troops,” said Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.).
Another hearing was held last year to address how KBR had exposed its own workers and hundreds of U.S. soldiers to a highly toxic chemical, sodium dichromate, at the Qarmat Ali water injection facility in the Spring and Summer of 2003.
Four National Guard soldiers testified at Monday’s hearing and told the committee about their subsequent health problems.
Russell Powell, Former Staff Sergeant of the West Virginia Army National Guard said “I and many other soldiers and KBR workers had severe nosebleeds, coughed up blood, had difficulty breathing and nausea, and/or experienced a burning sensation in our lungs and throats. After a few weeks of being the facility, many of the soldiers around me began getting lesions on their hands, arms, faces, and in the nostril area.”
The sodium dichromate was described by all four men as a thick orange powder that often filled the air during windstorms. They said they were certainly aware of the substance but even after inquiring about its effects, were told it was only a mild irritant. Despite the dismissal of the substance’s harmful nature, the soldiers were consistently having health problems and finding it difficult to breathe in the facility and surrounding areas.
Herman Gibb, PhD, an expert on health risks associated with exposure to sodium chromate, testified that the chemical is considered to be a deadly carcinogen.
“Based on my experience working at the EPA [Environmental Protection Agency] on risk assessments of hexavalent chromium and my study of chromate production workers, the symptoms reported by some of the soldiers who served at Qarmat Ali are consistent with significant exposure to sodium chromate,” Gibb said.
The soldiers stated that they continue to struggle with lingering respiratory, sinus, and other serious medical conditions.
Two of the four soldiers testifying were not notified until this year that they had been exposed to the carcinogen when they received a letter from their respective state’s National Guard under which they served.
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki assures the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that U.S. troops are no longer needed in Iraq. “Iraqi troops were able to maintain security and law and order, and this is a result of joint efforts,” he says. (0:30)
“He made it very clear to the committee that he envisions no reason at all at this time, and can’t really envision it in the future by which he would ask for American troops to remain,” Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) says of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. (0:24)
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki expresses his “strong desire” for the removal of UN Chapter 7 sanctions imposed on Iraq. “Iraq now does not represent any threat to peace and security,” he says. (0:23)
By Mariko Lamb – Talk Radio News Service
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki met with members of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations Thursday to discuss bilateral efforts to pursue a healthy new relationship between the two nations.
Chairman Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) expressed hope for future relations with Iraq. “All of us are very very hopeful that the path that we are on today marks a new relationship with Iraq, one where we are the United States and Iraq, two countries operating as we do with countries all around the world.”
Maliki expressed gratitude for efforts and sacrifices made by the U.S. in the past, and he ensured the committee that U.S. troops are no longer needed in Iraq. “Iraqi troops were able to maintain security and law and order, and this is a result of joint efforts,” he said.
Maliki also expressed Iraq’s strong desire for the removal of UN sanctions imposed on Iraq. “Iraq now does not represent any threat to peace and security,” he explained. “We are full of confidence that the United States as well as all countries in the international community…will help us to get out of Chapter 7 [sanctions].”
Kerry and Maliki assured together that U.S. and Iraq will work together in the spirit of mutual interests to implement both the U.S.-Iraqi security agreement and the Strategic Framework Agreement between the two nations.
By Sam Wechsler – Talk Radio News Service
Admiral Michael Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, spoke Wednesday about the need for the U.S. to better protect its troops from being harmed in the war in Afghanistan.
Mullen stated that “the center of gravity is really the protection of the [Afghan] people.” He added that civilian casualties are not conducive to winning the war.
He explained that the largest threats to the U.S. military in Afghanistan are attacks from IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices) employed by the Taliban, and post-traumatic stress disorder suffered by American soldiers.
“We’ve come a long way with respect to [IEDs], but this is an enemy that is very adaptive and very capable…and as they adapt, we adapt, and they adapt again,” said Mullen. In order to better equalize the threat of IEDs, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates is sending upwards of 2,000 armored all-terrain vehicles that provide better protection from the explosives.
“When I visit troops there is also a great skip in their step because they know they’ve made a difference, they’ve turned it around in a place like Iraq, and they’re very confident that they can get the job done in Afghanistan,” said Mullen.
As for a timetable, Mullen said that military must “turn the tide” against the Taliban within the next twelve to eighteen months.
David Menashri, Director for Iranian Studies at Tel Aviv University, explains how U.S. inaction toward North Korea may have lead to Iran’s nuclear ambitions. As the third country named in Bush’s “axis of evil,” Menashri explains, Iran felt that the best way to defend itself was to develop nuclear technology and stall U.S. military involvement. (0:55)
In a joint news conference Friday with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, President Barack Obama reiterated his position that he is taking a wait-and-see approach to the post-election chaos in Iran.
“We are still waiting to see how the situation in Iran plays out,” Obama said.
The President said that the prospect of Iran attaining a nuclear weapon in the near future is a big problem for both the U.S. and for security in the Middle East. He added that the post-election events of the past few weeks will impact the possibility of future dialogue between the U.S. and Iran.
Obama also mentioned that Iranian opposition candidate Hossein Mousavi has expressed interest in communicating directly with the White House. Obama did not say whether or not he has plans to speak with Mousavi.
When asked to respond to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahamadinejad’s demand that the U.S. apologize for ripping his regime’s strong-arm treatment of election protestors, Obama said, “I don’t take Mr. Ahmadinejad’s comments seriously.” He later added, “I would suggest that Mr. Ahmadinejad think carefully about the obligations he owes to his own people.”
Obama neatly sidestepped a question later in the news conference about Ahmadinejad’s recent comparison of him to former President George W. Bush.
The President was asked one question about the recent spike in violence in Iraq to which he professed, “there will continue to be some violence in Iraq for some time.”
He then explained that the biggest challenge facing American forces in Iraq right now is not preventing attacks by al-Qaeda, but rather helping Sunnis and Shiites resolve their differences over geographical boundaries and oil revenues. The President did not field any follow-up questions on the subject.
Talk Radio News Service White House Correspondent Victoria Jones contributed to this report.
By: Courtney Costello- Talk Radio News Service
The House has proposed new legislation that would close improperly facilitated burn pits used by U.S. military personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan. The legislation would also mandate health screenings for veterans who were exposed to toxins released from the pits, which are large ditches used to dispose of garbage and waste.
The Military Personnel War Zone Toxic Exposure Prevention Act would require the Secretary of Defense to establish a medical surveillance system that would pinpoint troops that have been exposed to hazardous chemicals burned in the pits. The act would also prohibit the military from discarding waste that omits dangerous levels of toxins.
“We believe it is premature to dismiss concern raised about burn pits after only a few years. Our country’s difficult experiences with agent orange and Gulf War illness taught us we must be vigilant in monitoring and treating our veterans long after they have returned from the battlefield,” said Rep. Tim Bishop (D-N.Y.).
Despite the fact that the military has purchased incinerators, the burn pits have become an indefinite solution to get rid of waste.
“[The burn pits are producing] 250 tons of waste everyday. Some of our troops are working directly inside of these pits with no protection,” said Kerry Baker, the Assistant National Legislative Director of the Disabled American Veterans.
Medical concerns that have been raised include chronic bronchitis, asthma, sleep apnea, allergy-like symptoms, lung problems and lymphoma.
“Where all of the trash from the base and from the base hospital was burned just over the wall…we lived under a cloud of smoke from that continuous fire, and everyone was affected on some level,” said Tom Tarantino, an Iraq War veteran and a policy associate for the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.
According to Rep. Bishop, the Department of Defense currently maintains that there are no long term health issues related to troops being exposed to burn pits.
