Troops returning from Iraq to be offered radiation checks

1.00pm

The 61 New Zealand defence engineers and tradespeople who spent time in Iraq will be offered medical checks if they think they were exposed to depleted uranium.

The second defence contingent is due back in New Zealand on Saturday after two deployments which began in September last year.

They were based in Basra where they helped rebuild schools, hospitals and health clinics, police stations, law courts, government buildings.

The mixture of army, navy and air force tradesmen and women also helped restore power supplies, rebuilt bridges and provided humanitarian assistance to the Iraqi people.

However, Defence Force spokeswoman, Commander Sandra McKie said in a statement today the returning soldiers would all be offered medical checks if they thought they were exposed to depleted uranium munitions.

Depleted uranium is a heavy, slightly radioactive metal that is used in weapons and armour plating and results in an extremely hard metal which performs far better than other competing material.

The American Defence Department (DOD) has said depleted uranium needs to be fired (as a munition) or "cooked off" in fires or explosions to be harmful to troops.

Even then it posed an extremely low radiological threat provided it remained outside the body, said the American DOD.

If it was taken into the body as metal fragments or dust-like particles, it may pose a long term health hazard if the amount was large.

Cdr McKie said all troops being sent to areas where depleted uranium may have been used had been briefed on the potential risk.

She said the deployment to Iraq cost $10 million but the troops were not there as part of the occupying force and were not involved in security operations.

She said Iraq was still a difficult and challenging environment and there was a security risk to the New Zealand troops.

"It was necessary for them to be able to protect themselves."

The troops carried arms when they left their British camp base at Basra but if the threat level escalated they did not leave the base.

The troops will be welcomed home by Prime Minister Helen Clark, Defence Minister Mark Burton, and Vice Chief of Defence Force, Air Vice Marshal David Bamfield at the Ohakea Air Force Base on Saturday night.

It was highly unlikely New Zealand would send any more troops to Iraq because the country "is just too difficult and too dangerous," Miss Clark told National Radio yesterday.

"We can see with the tragic recent hostage-takings and beheadings played on the internet that Iraq just isn't a place for civilians at the present time."

- NZPA