Government Cover up
Blackadder Camp, the Start of the Governments Cover up.
Gas, Gas, Gas, this was going on all the time. In the end the troops were told to lgnore the warings as the chemical alarms went off.
Al-Jubayl this was the place, of the chemical attack on the night of 19/20th Jan 1991.
The conflict in the persian Gulf region in 1990/91 must, take into account Iraq's Chemical and Biological capabilities, be considered as a life-threatening situation. It was for this reason that the coalition governments saw fit to carry out drug and vaccination programs to combat the effects of the CBW (Chemical, Biological, Warfare) threat in the hope that the troops would be sufficiently protected, thus allowing them to carry out their duties in a CBW environment.
One can assume that the governments would have based their vaccination program upon the risk factors expected from a chemical and biological theatre of war, in order to do this it is the authors opinion that the governments need only to look at their own export books.
Some years prior to the conflict of 90/91 Iraq turned to the west for the technology and the materials during the Iran/Iraq war. It is therefore suggested that it should not have been particularly difficult to assess the likely threat ? in those earlier years, had he not been supplied with his know how, his raw materials and precursors by the west.
It is further suggested that, in consideration of the time span since the Iran-Iraq war, would it not been feasible to have expected the governments of the coalition to have carried out all the necessary research and development of anti-biological and chemical agents, to establish safe and effective drugs to protect, not only the troops on the CBW Battlefield, but also civilians and children.
The threat assessment should not have proved too difficult, Perhaps this research and development was not carried out because no one perceived the threat of a head on conflict with Iraq, perhaps it was because they believed that their might, would sufficient to frighten Iraq into not using his arsenal of chemical and biological weapons. Perhaps it was because he was, after all, considered a friend by the governments, who had been supplying him.
This being the case, then it would seem evident that the governments were happy to sit back on their laurels, content to count the revenue that this trade had earned for their respective countries and with the belief of a job well done, after all Saddam Hussein would not have conceivably been able to produce weapons grade CBW materials himself.
As the possibility of a head on clash with Iraq started to appear inevitable, there must have been some frantic work going on within the military medical communities during the latter half of 1990. There must also have been some very worried individuals within the MoD and DoD regarding the suitability of the unlicensed, untested and unapproved cocktail of drugs, forced, in military manner, upon the troops in the Theatre of war.
The most widely used drug, Pyrodistigmine Bromide (NAP's), which according to the military medical community, is allegedly the most effective Pre-treatment against nerve agent poisoning, was issued to the troops in 30mg tablets which were to be taken at the dosage of one tablet every 8 hours. This was done without any medical supervision, the tablets, merely handed out, it was then a case of letting the troops supervise themselves when administering this medication. However, human nature being what it is people either forgot to take them or simply chose not to because of the side effects.
On the occasion of "forgetting to take the tablets", it was not unknown for troops to pop 5 or 6 tablets whenever the air-raid sirens went off.
The troops were told the dose rate of the drug and that was all they were told, there was no mention of the diarrhoea or abdominal cramps that would follow lasting for up to, two weeks. There was no talk of lethargy, nausea, headaches and the debilitating fatigue. There was no form of consent from the recipients of these toxic substances.
On the other hand, had consent been sought and the facts related to the troops, including the indications, contraindications and side effects. The authorities would have been in the position whereby had the consent not been gained, the injections subsequently would not have been. The governments only concern was the risk of largescale battlefield casualties from nerve agent poisoning. Now it would appear was the time for definitive testing of the NAP's tablets. NAP's have been within the military defence arsenal since at least 1976 though, untested either in simulated or real life scenario. The probability is that NAP's have been around for a lot longer, and should have had their trials completed many years prior to the invasion of Kuwait.
Taking into consideration the amount of time that NAP's have been around, it follows that there has been more than enough time to extensively test this drug. Certainly to a point whereby it could have been used on a very wide scale in a state of National Emergency, even to non-military personnel. Certainly it would appear that, throughout the cold war, there was little preparation for protection from the constant threat of potential CBW attack throughout the duration of the cold war.
So far we have only really considered NAP's in any depth, though there are other anomalies within the pharmaceutical cocktail that casts doubt upon the vaccination program, there were also disagreements amongst the coalition leaders as to what the expected threat was. The UK perceived the threat as being Anthrax and Plague and vaccinated their troops accordingly. The Americans while fully agreeing with the British Government on the potential use of Anthrax chose to opt for the possibility that Botulism Toxin was the Bacterium of chose for the Iraqi leader.
One cannot help but to wonder how, the two major powers in the coalition forces were able to disagree, to a point where one, or the other, could have been wrong. Were we as strong a coalition as the media emphasised. What else did the powers to be disagree upon, the possibility of chemical and biological attack, were they either both, or singularly, working on different research projects and protocols ?.
Again, informed consent rears its head. In the case of the NAP's we have seen that consent was not sought from the troops, the same holds true for the BW (Biological Warfare) vaccines. It can be argued that if these vaccines were given individually, that the risks associated with the vaccine are known and therefore the act of vaccinsting a person against anthrax could be deemed to be an acceptable practice within medical and ethical guidelines. However, in the case of the cocktail that was administered to the troops, we now find ourselves stepping outside the boundaries of acceptable practice and into the field of research.
The cocktail involved multiple drugs being injected within a very short time of each other ( Reportedly within 30 seconds on average) The medical professionals must have known what the immediate effects of the drugs would have been following administration, however,only as a result of in depth research, (as current evidence suggests, was not carried out) what was the long term effects of the cocktail of drugs ?.
Had research been carried out at any stage, the governments would have produced the documentation from the outset of the whole Gulf War Syndrome affair to allay the fears and Accusations by the soldiers and the media. The task to discover the long-term effects of this cocktail was sadly left to the recipients to find out as their health deteriorated. As families watched fathers, sons, husbands and brothers, mothers, daughters and friends start to suffer major personality changes. It was these individuals who had to endure the cumulative side effects and to provide the research results.
When reported to the authorities the soldiers, presenting with a range of weird and unaccountable illnesses, were told that their symptoms would pass within a few days. Sadly, this has proved not to be the case. A large proportion of Gulf War Veterans are still suffering with a wide range of symptoms, notably they all seem to be linked to congested or depleted immune systems.
As evidence slowly piles up against the MoD and DoD, it now appears that this cocktail, designed to protect the troops on the battlefield had a reverse effect. From the war these individuals have brought, with their memories, a legacy that now affects every aspect of their lives. Have the authorities scored an own goal by negligently using this cocktail that they knew so little about ? Is it this cocktail that is the root cause of these illnesses that have, collectively, become known as "GULF WAR SYNDROME OR DESERT STORM SYNDROME"
Perhaps we will never know. One can only guess at the real truth, certainly those individuals responsible for the miscarrisge will go, unknown, and unpunished for their negligent actions.
The fight towards recognition, classification and treatment will, for many years be reliant on Governments "chosen" research in a bid of hopefully finding the real cause, "Chosen Research" is a term that is not chosen at rendom, it became very clear early on in the campaign, that those scientists and eminent medical research specialists who had gained vital evidence to support the veterans claims has, for some strange reason, been ignored by the MoD and DoD in preference for those Research Programmes of their choice.
Professor Goran Jamal, to name but one who has found gross anomalies amongst veterans in relation to neural transmission defects that related to organophosphate poisoning. However, in the event that research programmes that was commissioned by the government is pointing in the direction of supporting the veterans claims, in spite of this little heed is taken by the MoD and DoD no one in the seat of power really wants to know. This is especially evident in the UK, whose policies towards the treatment of veterans affairs is, by comparison to the Americans, a long way behind and must change dramatically in order to provide their ex-servicemen and women their just rewards for the pride, the honour and belief that soldiers place in their regiment, their government and their country.
The fact that some of these individuals are now unable to work, the fact that babies to veterans are being born disfigured and people are dying of mysterious symptoms (over 500 to date in the UK) should be sufficient for the individuals who have been voted into power to ensure that they are adequately cared for. Though sadly, none of this appears to matter.
Note had to be taken on the governments reaction at the onset of what appeared to become, Gulf War II. As the threat of war against Iraq once again came to the fore of News Headlines and troops were once again dispatched to the war zone, veterans of the last conflict sat back to see what vaccinations the troops were given. Surprisingly, gone was the cocktail that was dished out last time, gone had the practice of administration without consent. Even the Defence Minister sat on television while he was given his Anthrax vaccine, (just one) administered as living proof that there was nothing wrong with the vaccine. Why has the defence minister not provided this evidence to the ill soldiers from the 1990/91 war and received all the vaccinations that were given to them ?.
It is time for governments to wake up to reality and realise that those who serve in the armed forces are more then laboratory animals, they are human and should be treated accordingly. This must surely include the troops being told the full story about the drugs being used, not just a simple statement to the effect that say " you will survive if you have the drug but survival will not be guaranteed if you don't take them".
Informed consent must become mandatory, both in peacetime and during war. The governments sent the troops to war whilst the ministers sit in their offices, remote from the horrors of war, would they be more interested if the shoe was on the other foot, it's worth thinking about for everyone's sake !
Have you heard any Gulf War Veteran patients say;
"Something is not right, but i can't just put my finger on it"
ill Gulf War Veterans are presenting with a broad range of Signs and Symptoms, that are multi-disciplinary. A list of common signs & symptoms are listed below. It may seem strange that the signs and symptoms are so varied but i contest that it is no stranger than what Medical Practitioners were presented with before the recognition of diabetes
1. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (This may be PTSD or it may be brain damage that Scientists have identified that presents with the same signs and symptoms. This research was carried out in Israel and it was about the combination effects of what troops had administered and was exposed to)
2. Fibromyalgia
3. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
4. Irritable Bowel Syndrome
5. Anxiety
6. Depression
7. Mood Swings
8. Poor Concentration
9. Impaired Memory
10. Dyslexia/ Intermittent Dyslexia
11. Stuttering/ Intermittent Stuttering
12. Hot Flushes, with profuse sweating
13. Dizziness/ loss of balance
14. Enlarged Liver/ Fatty Infiltration of Liver
15. Kidney Malformation
16. Frequency of micturitian
17. Bleeding Gums
18. Excessive Weight Loss
19. Excessive Weight Gain
20. Gluten Sensitivity
21. High Cysteine Levels
22. Low Sulphate Levels
23. Parasthesia of Hands & Feet
24. Burning & Stabbing Sensations
25. Respiratory Problems
26. Skin Rashes, Skin Sores & Lumps & Bumps under Skin.
27. Nausea
28. Burning semen Syndrome
29. Brain stem dysfunction/ damage
If you would like any further information or advice contact the Association NGVFA
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