Cancer figures soar tenfold in Iraqi province

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Doctors in Iraq are recording a sharp rise in the number of cancer victims south of Baghdad. Sufferers in the province of Babil have risen almost tenfold in just three years.

Locals blame depleted uranium from US military equipment used in the 2003 invasion. Some 500 cases of cancer were diagnosed in 2004 alone. That figure rose to almost 1,000 two years later. Mosab Jasim reports that Iraqi researchers believe radiation is responsible for the increase in cancer and birth defects in the country, but he says the US and British militaries have sent mixed signals about the effects of depleted uranium.

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