Tag Archives: nuclear

May 29 2013

Iraqi Birth Defects Worse than Hiroshima

The United States may be finished dropping bombs on Iraq, but Iraqi bodies will be dealing with the consequences for generations to come in the form of birth defects, mysterious illnesses and skyrocketing cancer rates.

Al Jazeera’s Dahr Jamail reports that contamination from U.S. weapons, particularly Depleted Uranium (DU) munitions, has led to an Iraqi health crisis of epic proportions. “[C]hildren being born with two heads, children born with only one eye, multiple tumours, disfiguring facial and body deformities, and complex nervous system problems,” are just some of the congenital birth defects being linked to military-related pollution.
In certain Iraqi cities, the health consequences are significantly worse than those seen in the aftermath of the atomic bombing of Japan at the end of WWII.
The highest rates are in the city of Fallujah, which underwent two massive US bombing campaigns in 2004. Though the U.S. initially denied it, officials later admitted using white phosphorous. In addition, U.S. and British forces unleashed an estimated 2,000 tons of depleted uranium ammunitions in populated Iraqi cities in 2003.

DU, a chemically toxic heavy metal produced in nuclear waste, is used in weapons due to its ability to pierce through armor. That’s why the US and UK were among a handful of nations (France and Israel) who in December refused to sign an international agreement to limit its use, insisting DU is not harmful, science be damned. Meanwhile, the Pentagon’s refusal to release details about where DU munitions were fired has made it difficult to clean up.
Today, 14.7 percent of Fallujah’s babies are born with a birth defect, 14 times the documented rate in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Fallujah’s babies have also experienced heart defects 13 times the European rate and nervous system defects 33 times that of Europe. That comes on top of a 12-fold rise in childhood cancer rates since 2004. Furthermore, the male-to-female birth ratio is now 86 boys for every 100 girls, indicating genetic damage that affects males more than females.
(On a side note, these pictures are rather sanitized compared to other even more difficult to look at images. See here if you can bear it.)

If Fallujah is the Iraqi Hiroshima, then Basra is its Nagasaki.
According to a study published in the Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, a professional journal based in the southwestern German city of Heidelberg, there was a sevenfold increase in the number of birth defects in Basra between 1994 and 2003.
According to the Heidelberg study, the concentration of lead in the milk teeth of sick children from Basra was almost three times as high as comparable values in areas where there was no fighting.
In addition, never before has such a high rate of neural tube defects (“open back”) been recorded in babies as in Basra, and the rate continues to rise. According to the study, the number of hydrocephalus (“water on the brain”) cases among new-borns is six times as high in Basra as it is in the United States.
This isn’t isolated to Fallujah and Basra. The overall Iraqi cancer rate has also skyrocketed:
Official Iraqi government statistics show that, prior to the outbreak of the First Gulf War in 1991, the rate of cancer cases in Iraq was 40 out of 100,000 people. By 1995, it had increased to 800 out of 100,000 people, and, by 2005, it had doubled to at least 1,600 out of 100,000 people. Current estimates show the increasing trend continuing.
As Grist’s Susie Cagle points out, “That’s potentially a more than 4,000 percent increase in the cancer rate, making it more than 500 percent higher than the cancer rate in the U.S.“
Dr. Mozghan Savabieasfahani, an environmental toxicologist based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, told Jamail that “These observations collectively suggest an extraordinary public health emergency in Iraq. Such a crisis requires urgent multifaceted international action to prevent further damage to public health.”
Instead, the international community, including the nation most responsible for the health crisis (hint: it starts with a “U” and ends with an “S”), is mostly ignoring the problem.
To make matters worse, Iraq’s healthcare system, which was once the envy of the region, is virtually nonexistent due to the mass exodus of Iraq’s medical doctors since 2003. According to recent estimates, there are currently fewer than 100 psychiatrists and 20,0000 physicians serving a population of 31 million Iraqis.
Dahr Jamail was on Democracy Now this morning discussing the horrific effects of military-related pollution in Iraq:
Oct 6 2012

Beyond the Propaganda: The Real Reason Why the U.S. and Israel Do Not Want a Nuclear Iran

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By Brandon Turbeville, ActivistPost

As the war drums beat faster and louder for an aggressive assault against Iran amidst the shock and horror at the mere thought of Iran gaining an unproven and currently unfeasible nuclear weapon, there remains the occasional kernel of truth that manages to slip through the firewall of the mainstream media.

For instance, in an article published on October 2 in the Guardian entitled, “The true reason US fears Iranian nukes: they can deter US attacks,” Glenn Greenwald points out the fact that the main concern is not necessarily that Iran may be able to attack the United States or its allies (meaning Israel) with a nuclear bomb, but simply the fact that if Iran were to obtain such a weapon, it would be able to resist U.S. dominance and aggression more effectively.

Although clearly not the sole reason for a Western attack on Iran, Greenwald is correct to point out that destroying the ability of Iran to resist American assault is indeed part of the overarching agenda. Thus, soon after introducing the thesis of the article, Greenwald asks an important question.

Continue reading →

Sep 24 2012

Iran may launch pre-emptive strike on israel, conflict could grow into WWIII – senior commander

An Israeli missile is launched from the Iron Dome missile system in the city of Ashdod. (AFP Photo/Jack Guez)

An Iranian military official has warned that military conflict between Iran and israel could “turn into World War III.” He added that if israel “is putting the final touches on attacking Iran,” a preemptive strike against Tel Aviv would ensue.

israel “cannot imagine” the force of Iran’s response if Tel Aviv attacks it, Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh told Iran’s Arabic-language television network. “It will sustain heavy damage and that will be a prelude to its obliteration,” he said.

Hajizadeh added that Iran does not see this happening at the moment because he does not believe that israel will conduct an attack without its strongest ally – the United States.

If America does decide to back an israeli plan to strike Iran, Hejizadeh insists Tehran will retaliate against both Tel Aviv and Washington. Continue reading →

Jul 18 2012

X marks the spot: Spy ring and warships encircle Iran

The X-band radars that the United States has installed in Israel’s Negev desert (AFP Photo/David Buimovitch)

The Pentagon is quickly tightening its ring of forces around Iran. As a recent report reveals a radar belt around the Persian country is almost complete, the biggest ever naval drills, involving up to 20 nations, are to take place in the Gulf waters.

The US military have asked for $12.2 million from Congress to build an AN/TPY-2 type radar station in Qatar. The construction is due be finished by the end of this month, The Wall Street Journal reports, quoting US officials.

Similar radars, commonly known as X-band, are also located in Turkey and Israel’s desert of Negev. The detector in Qatar would complete the backbone of a system designed to protect Israel and Europe from Iranian ballistic missiles, say the WSJ sources. The shield would pinpoint missile launches from the north, west and south of the Persian country.

There are also ambitions to deploy a THAAD (the army’s first Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) missile-interceptor system to the region in the coming months. This independent detector may be hosted by the United Arab Emirates and, as the project sponsors say, together with X-Band will provide “an extra layer of defense.” Continue reading →

May 14 2012

Terrorist Group Puts Out Propaganda Report Claiming Iranian Secretly Advancing Nuclear Weapons Program

By Madison Ruppert, End Of Lie for The Intel Hub

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) – the political arm of the Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK or MKO) often known as the People’s Mujahedin of Iran (PMOI), a terrorist organization trained by the United States and the Israeli Mossad to carry out assassinations and other covert operations in Iran – has put out another propaganda report dealing with the Iranian nuclear program.

In their latest report, which a top U.S. nuclear expert already said should be treated with great skepticism according to Haaretz, claims that there are 60 scientists and engineers currently playing a role in the alleged Iranian nuclear weapons program.

Of course, in reality, the United States Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta has confirmed that Iran is not pursuing nuclear weapons on multiple occasions. Similarly, the United States intelligence community does not have any evidence indicating that Iran is pursuing nuclear weapons.

Even the Israeli military chief Benny Gantz shares this position, making the claims from the NCRI highly suspicious at best.

The NCRI’s track record is far from one which would inspire confidence in the accuracy of their claims.

Continue reading →

Jan 11 2012

‘Mossad, MKO killed Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, Iranian scientist’

The Israeli spy agency, Mossad, and the Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO) terrorist group are the main perpetrators of the recent terrorist attack against an Iranian scientist, an American blogger quotes an Israeli source as saying

American journalist Richard Silverstein said the assassination of Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, a senior official at Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility, brings to mind the terrorist acts committed against other Iranian scientists in recent years.

Unknown individuals attached a sticky bomb to Ahmadi Roshan’s car and detonated it on Wednesday.

Ahmadi Roshan was a Sharif University of Technology chemical engineering graduate and served as marketing deputy of Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility.

On November 29, 2010, unidentified terrorists slapped adhesive bombs onto the vehicles of Iranian university professors Majid Shahriari and Fereydoun Abbasi and detonated them.

Professor Shahriari was killed immediately, but Dr. Abbasi, the current director of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, and his wife sustained minor injuries and were rushed to a hospital.

On December 2, 2010, the Iranian Intelligence Ministry announced that the Israeli Mossad, the American CIA, and the British MI6 all played a role in those attacks.

Professor Masoud Ali-Mohammadi, another scholar at Tehran University, was assassinated by a booby-trapped motorbike in the Iranian capital in January 2010.

The bombing took place near the professor’s home in northern Tehran.

Source : Press TV

Dec 10 2011

Russian Deputy FM says no military components exist in Iran’s nuclear program

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Iran’s nuclear program does not have any military component, Russian Deputy FM Sergei Ryabkov said, RIA Novosti reported.

“We hold reliable information that no data exist on the military components of Iran’s nuclear program. There’s no proof for existence of such components in the nuclear program,” Ryabkov said.

He added that “it is necessary to clarify the doubtful milestones through negotiations, and in this regard, Iran should cooperate with the IAEA.”

Threat to impose additional sanctions against Tehran began to appear after a report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Iran’s nuclear program, which stated that Iran has worked over developing nuclear weapons, and such activities may still continue.

The United States and several Western countries suspect Iran of developing nuclear weapons under the coverage of peaceful nuclear energy program. Tehran denies the charges, saying its nuclear program is aimed at meeting the country’s electricity needs.

(Source: Trend)

Nov 9 2011

Phony, Fabricated IAEA Report On Iran Released

By Stephen Lendman

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Previous articles said US intelligence assessments through March 2011 (the latest one) found no evidence of Iranian nuclear weapons development.

During his December 1, 1997 – November 30, 2009 tenure as IAEA director general, Mohamed ElBaradei concurred. He carefully avoided anti-Iranian rhetoric and baseless charges.

As a result, Washington and Western allies replaced him with Yukiya Amano, known to be more amenable to their interests. Six ballots and heavy pressure eliminated South Africa’s Abdul Samad Minty.

Under his tenure since December 1, 2009, IAEA became a Western tool, providing conjecture, dubious intelligence, and fabricated allegations about an alleged Iranian nuclear weapons program. Despite no evidence proving one, Amano’s report claims otherwise.

On November 8, New York Times writers David Sanger and William Broad headlined, “UN Finds Signs of Work by Iran Toward Nuclear Device,” saying:

“United Nations weapons inspectors released a trove of new evidence Tuesday that they say makes a ‘credible’ case that ‘Iran has carried out activities relevant to the development of a nuclear device,’ and that the project may still be under way.”

Based on forged, otherwise suspect, long ago discredited, discounted, or nonexistent documents, IAEA’s report lacks credibility. Moreover, nothing new was revealed. Material from 2004 and earlier was manipulated to look current. It’s not!

Based on identical information, US intelligence and ElBaradei produced completely opposite conclusions. Now they’re politicized, fraudulently hyped, and regurgitated by major media liars, political Washington, Israeli hard-liners, and supportive Western leaders.

Continue reading →

Nov 9 2011

New Iran sanctions a ‘regime change tool’ – Russia

By Robert Bridge

Moscow says it will not support new and harsher sanctions against Iran, arguing that such a move would amount to an attempt to facilitate regime change in the increasingly isolated Islamic Republic.

Following the release of a report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that says Iran may have taken steps to develop nuclear weapons, Moscow says the resource of UN sanctions against Iran was exhausted by Resolution 1929, the fourth round of sanctions against Tehran.

Moreover, sanctions against Iran would be perceived as a “regime change tool.”

“The international community will view all additional sanctions against Iran as an instrument of Continue reading →

Sep 10 2011

Iran hits back at President Sarkozy over attack warning

“Iran has warned it would “not hesitate” to strike back at any military action, in a formal complaint to the United Nations over an attack warning made by French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

Mr Sarkozy said last week that Iran’s “military nuclear and ballistic ambitions constitute a growing threat that may lead to a preventive attack.”

Iran’s UN ambassador said in a letter to UN leaders that his country would “not hesitate to act in self-defence to respond to any attack against the Iranian nation.”

Iran would “take appropriate defensive measures to protect itself,” the ambassador, Mohmmad Khazaee, told UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the Security Council, of which France is one of the five permanent members.

Mr Sarkozy had made “inflammatory remarks and baseless allegations,” the envoy added.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran expresses its deep concern over, and strong condemnation of, such a provocative, unwarranted and irresponsible statement against Iran,” Mr Khazaee said.

The French leader has been one of the most outspoken critics of Iran in the western alliance which has accused Tehran of seeking a nuclear bomb. The Iranian ambassador again denied the charge.

In an August 31 speech to French ambassadors, Mr Sarkozy did not say which country might carry out the preventive attack.

But he said “Iran refuses to negotiate seriously” and declared that France would work with its allies to build support for tougher international sanctions.

The UN Security Council has already passed four rounds of sanctions against Iran over its enrichment program.”

(source: Mathaba )

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