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From Joanna, Washington, DC:

Is it true that the US is using depleted uranium weapons? If so, what justification is given for using these weapons? What are the effects of these weapons? I have read some pretty horrible things and want to know whether they are true.

Amnesty International USA's Iraq Country Specialist, Beth Ann Toupin responds. She has been an active member of Amnesty International for many years and is currently a member of the AIUSA Board of Directors.

First used during the 1991 Gulf War and then in Kosovo, shells made from depleted uranium (DU) reportedly are being widely used again by US/UK Coalition forces in Iraq. The by-product of the uranium enrichment process used to extract enriched uranium fuel for nuclear power plants, DU -- or Uranium 238 -- a chemically toxic and mildly radioactive heavy metal. Readily available as a waste product, DU is used in the production of armor penetrating military ordinance because of its high density (about twice that of lead), and because it can ignite upon impact: DU rounds can tear through tanks and buildings more easily than other weapons can.

The effects of DU remains an unresolved question. DU rounds burn up on impact, creating a radioactive dust, the health effects of which are the subject of much debate and study. DU dust can be inhaled, ingested, or contaminate wounds, and some studies suggest links between DU dust and the dramatic rise in the incidence of birth defects and cancers, particularly leukemias and lymphomas, in Iraq during the last decade. Concerns have been raised that when DU rounds miss a target and penetrate the ground, they remain in the soil -- risking contamination of groundwater -- unless removed. There are conflicting findings in studies of the linkage between the presence of DU particles and groundwater contamination. Some scientific research indicates that depleted uranium's chemical toxicity may cause more harm than its radioactivity, although a combined radiotoxic effect may contribute to the development of cancer and other illnesses. The relationship between exposure to depleted uranium and health effects in humans remains uncertain.

Pending conclusive studies on the long-term health and environmental effects of DU weapons, the grave concerns raised about the possible indiscriminate effects on health, particularly for non-combatants, posed by their use should be seriously considered by parties to a conflict. Currently, the use of DU munitions is not specifically prohibited by international law. However, Article 35(3) of Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions prohibits "methods or means of warfare which are intended, or may be expected, to cause widespread, long-term and severe damage to the natural environment". Article 35(2) prohibits the use of ''weapons, projectiles and material and methods of warfare of a nature to cause superfluous injury or unnecessary suffering''. According to Article 36, ''In the study, development, acquisition or adoption of a new weapon, means or method of warfare, a High Contracting Party is under an obligation to determine whether its employment would, in some or all circumstances, be prohibited by this Protocol or by any other rule of international law applicable to the High Contracting Party." Amnesty International calls upon all governments to refrain from using DU weapons until the long-term health effects have been determined.