The report, "Collateral Damage: The Health and Environmental Costs of War on Iraq", was issued by International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW), recipient of the 1985 Nobel Peace Prize, and produced by Medact, the organization's United Kingdom affiliate. It is being released today by IPPNW member groups in more than a dozen nations, including Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) in the U.S.
Amy Sisley, MD, a Professor of Surgery at the University of Maryland Medical System, explained the report's findings, "In an era where images of combat are beamed from aircraft, it is too easy to forget about the direct, physical consequences of war. Bombs deafen, blind and blow apart people, riddling them with shrapnel, glass and debris. They collapse buildings on victims and destroy infrastructure vital to finding and treating the wounded. Unexploded ordinance left behind kills and maims, and battlefield toxins can contaminate the environment for decades."
"Collateral Damage" is based on projections from the 1990-91 Gulf War, which led to nearly 200,000 casualties. It analyzes current U.S. combat scenarios and concludes that a new conflict will be much more intense and destructive than the first Gulf War. If nuclear weapons were used, the death toll would rise into the millions.
Amy Sisley, MD, a Professor of Surgery at the University of Maryland Medical System, explained the report's findings, "In an era where images of combat are beamed from aircraft, it is too easy to forget about the direct, physical consequences of war. Bombs deafen, blind and blow apart people, riddling them with shrapnel, glass and debris. They collapse buildings on victims and destroy infrastructure vital to finding and treating the wounded. Unexploded ordinance left behind kills and maims, and battlefield toxins can contaminate the environment for decades."
"Collateral Damage" is based on projections from the 1990-91 Gulf War, which led to nearly 200,000 casualties. It analyzes current U.S. combat scenarios and concludes that a new conflict will be much more intense and destructive than the first Gulf War. If nuclear weapons were used, the death toll would rise into the millions.