Post by Bozur on Dec 22, 2008 15:22:38 GMT -5
Italy to Compensate Soldiers for “Balkan War Syndrome”
Tirana, Dec. 18, 2008 (AENews) - A court in Rome ordered the Italian Ministry of Defense to pay 500,000 Euro as indemnity for the life of Stefano Melone, a military helicopter pilot who died of cancer after serving in Albania, Kosovo and other countries, OrvietoNews.it announced today.
The court concluded that the malignant vascular tumour that caused the death of Melone, was due to exposure to radioactive substances, while serving in Balkans. The Italian pilot was diagnosed with cancer in 2000 and died in Milan in November 2001, only 40-year-old.
In 2001, Italian media published several stories claiming that a big number of soldiers that served in post-conflict zones, particularly in Bosnia and Kosovo, died of Leukemia caused by depleted uranium, used in anti-tank missiles. Depleted uranium makes missiles better able to penetrate armoured vehicles.
Half a dozen Italian troops who had served in Kosovo died of Leukemia after returning home. Media and others claimed that depleted uranium was the culprit. “Balkan War Syndrome”, a term coined by the media, caused strong debates between NATO members and the scientific community.
UN opened an investigation in 2001 and examined 11 out of 112 sites in Kosovo bombed by NATO. Scientists said that they had found either remnants of depleted uranium or evidence of increased radioactivity around the impact points left by the raids.
The World Health Organisation, WHO, says it has found no evidence of increased leukemia in Kosovo since the 1998 bombardment. However, several dozens of soldiers from NATO member states have died or are diagnosed with cancer since that.
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