18 September 2000 Chemical-Biological Weapons Victims Report Increased Health Problems by William B. Reinckens Washington File Correspondent At a September 18 press briefing on how Iraqi President Saddam Hussein might be prosecuted for war crimes, Dr. Christine Gosden, a leading expert on the effects of chemical and biological agents on humans, said that she and her medical team have been able to identify 281 separate sites where Iraqi forces used chemical, biological and perhaps radiological weapons against civilians in the northern Iraqi town of Halabja twelve years ago. At the same briefing, U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues David J. Scheffer spoke about the efforts by the United States to gather evidence of Iraqi crimes. He called for an "international response" to bring Saddam Hussein and a dozen of his top people to justice. He also told reporters later that over the next couple of months he would pursue with the United Nations the request that the International Criminal Court (ICC) be convened early "so that Saddam and his top officials can be labeled" as criminals through an indictment for their alleged war crimes. "The de jure case against Saddam Hussein and his top associates is rock-solid," Scheffer said. Godsen also spoke about the long-term health effect use of the weapons is having on Iraq's population today, as a result of a "very systematic" program of genocide. "Halabja marks the largest number of people to be attacked by weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and has to be studied," she said. The doctor noted that the attacks were aimed at the Kurdish population in Halabja, where 3,000 to 5,000 men, women and children died. "Today there are high incidences of cancers, cardio-pulmonary disease, congenital anomalies, and other major medical disorders," Gosden said, adding that there is a 14 percent loss of children under the age of 16 since 1987 as a result of the exposure. It is also believed that between 250,000 and 300,000 people were exposed to biological and chemical agents used at Halabja and the surrounding area, but no one knows the exact extent these attacks will have on the people living there. After twelve years, it is now possible to assess blame for Halabja, said Dr. Gosden. "The testimony (of the people of Halabja) is carried in their bodies," she said. Scheffer pointed out that during the Iran-Iraq war, Saddam's forces also used chemical weapons against Iran killing 5,000 Iranians between 1983 and 1988 and that photographic and videotape evidence have documented the attacks. Saddam's arsenal of chemical and biological weapons included mustard gas, Saran, and VX agents, the ambassador indicated. Scheffer recalled that Saddam's forces between 1987-88, during what is called the Anfal campaign, launched a campaign of genocide against Iraqi Kurds in which 50,000 to 100,000 lives were lost according to Human Rights Watch estimates. Sahib Al-Hakim, from the Organization of Human Rights in Iraq, provided a visual chronology of Saddam's twenty-year history of physical and psychological torture. Photographic evidence and testimonials of victims who underwent some of the most heinous kinds of torture were shown with written documentation. Perhaps the most chilling photo was of a large box that crushed victims and "left what was left to run out the other side." "Even today, these things go on, along with disappearances of people," said Al-Hakim. At the briefing, INDICT, a British-based non-governmental organization that has been calling for Saddam Hussein's indictment, passed out a brochure listing Saddam Hussein's crimes and those of his regime. The brochure points to articles and conventions where Iraq has committed gross violations of international law and human rights violations. Among the dozen names mentioned at the briefing, Saddam Hussein's sons Uday and Qusay were listed as was Tariq Aziz, deputy prime minister of Iraq and former foreign minister. INDICT also lists as one of Saddam's crimes the forced expulsion of an estimated 400,000 Shi'as from northern and southern Iraq who were left on the Iranian border. Saddam's crimes extend beyond Iraq, according to event organizers. Former Iraqi general and opposition figure Najeeb al-Salihi was introduced at the press event. Al-Salihi was singled out last week by U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright when she described him as a "real hero" who has "refused to submit to the unspeakable blackmail of the Baghdad regime, directed not only at him, but also at his family, because he has written and spoken the truth about the cause of Iraq's humiliation. He stands for the millions of Iraqis who have sacrificed beyond human comprehension as they refuse to submit to oppression." (The Washington File is a product of the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov) Return to the Washington File