Humvees from the 407th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron at nearby Tallil Air Base patrol in the desert in 2005. (Credit: U.S. Air Forces/Master Sgt. Maurice Hessel)

Is the toxic legacy of the Iraq War deforming children near US bases?

Researchers find radioactive compounds and elevated risk of health disorders in Iraqi children living near a U.S. Army base

Iraqi children living near a U.S. army base have elevated levels of dangerous metals in their bodies and are more likely to suffer from birth defects, according to a new study.

Keep reading... Show less

SUBSCRIBE TO EHN'S MUST-READ DAILY NEWSLETTER: ABOVE THE FOLD

Justice

Climate change is killing thousands of years of indigenous wisdom

Farmers around the world rely on millennia-old wisdom to guide their planting. Scrambled weather and seasons are forcing them into uncharted territory.

Read the Full Article on

www.nationalgeographic.com

www.salon.com

Toxics

"The destruction of a society": First the U.S. invaded Iraq - then we left it poisoned

Bombs, bullets and military hardware abandoned by U.S. forces have left Iraq "toxic for millennia."

Read the Full Article on

www.salon.com

www.thenational.ae

Climate

Famine on the rise in the Middle East and North Africa

Prolonged crises are threatening food security for some 52 million in the region.

Read the Full Article on

www.thenational.ae

www.necn.com

Toxics

From service to sick: The effects of veterans' exposure to burn pits

Thousands of veterans say toxic smoke from trash fires at their military bases made them sick.

Read the Full Article on

www.necn.com

www.independent.co.uk

Climate

Climate change will fuel more wars and displacement in the Middle East, experts warn

The most volatile region in the world is about to be plunged into further chaos because of climate change, academics and international officials warned at a conference on Tuesday.

Read the Full Article on

www.independent.co.uk

Population

Baghdad at 10 million: Fragile dreams of normality as megacity status beckons

Baghdad's recent population growth has been driven by conflict as well as other more familiar issues, as people have moved from the peripheral cities most affected by the recent violence.

Read the Full Article on

www.theguardian.com

www.voanews.com

Water

Iraq fish farmers hit by carp deaths, amid fears over pollution

Agriculture ministry says that illness among the carp spread quickly because of cramped conditions in breeding cages, and that reduced water flow along the Euphrates had also contributed.

Read the Full Article on

www.voanews.com

Climate

Some of the countries leading on climate change might surprise you

Iran is tackling the potential water supply crisis exacerbated by climate change.

Read the Full Article on

www.theguardian.com

www.phillytrib.com

Justice

Water pollution in Iraq threatens Mandaean religious rites

Unlike in ancient times, the storied Tigris River that runs through Baghdad is fouled by untreated sewage and dead carp, which float by in the fast-moving current.

Read the Full Article on

www.phillytrib.com

www.france24.com

Climate

EU's Iraq envoy struck down by Basra's dirty water

The European Union's ambassador to Iraq said Thursday he had become sick in the city of Basra from polluted water, which has seen tens of thousands of residents hospitalised.

Read the Full Article on

www.france24.com

Climate

Catastrophic drought threatens Iraq as major dams in surrounding countries cut off water to its great rivers

After decades of war – including the last battle against Isis – Iraq is in danger of losing the waters of the Tigris and Euphrates.

Read the Full Article on

www.independent.co.uk

Justice

‘This is an eye-opener’: Changes in global water supply hint at future conflicts and crises

A new analysis points to areas where there is increasing potential for conflict as a growing demand for water collides with the impacts of climate change.

Read the Full Article on

www.theglobeandmail.com

www.washingtonpost.com

Climate

Pakistan’s 114 degrees is just one of many all-time March records toppled in Asia

At least seven countries set March temperature records late last week. The most incredible record was Pakistan's, where it has never been so hot this early in the season.

Read the Full Article on

www.washingtonpost.com

www.nationalgeographic.com

Above the Fold Newsletter

The explosive battle to build Iraq's Halgurd-Sakran National Park

Amid land mines, militants, and air strikes, conservationists are trying to carve out a protected area in the war-torn country. Can they succeed?

Read the Full Article on

www.nationalgeographic.com

From our Newsroom

Is the toxic legacy of the Iraq War deforming children near US bases?

Researchers find radioactive compounds and elevated risk of health disorders in Iraqi children living near a U.S. Army base

Climate change is killing thousands of years of indigenous wisdom

"The destruction of a society": First the U.S. invaded Iraq - then we left it poisoned

Famine on the rise in the Middle East and North Africa

From service to sick: The effects of veterans' exposure to burn pits

Climate change will fuel more wars and displacement in the Middle East, experts warn

Baghdad at 10 million: Fragile dreams of normality as megacity status beckons

Iraq fish farmers hit by carp deaths, amid fears over pollution

Some of the countries leading on climate change might surprise you

Water pollution in Iraq threatens Mandaean religious rites

EU's Iraq envoy struck down by Basra's dirty water

Catastrophic drought threatens Iraq as major dams in surrounding countries cut off water to its great rivers

‘This is an eye-opener’: Changes in global water supply hint at future conflicts and crises

Pakistan’s 114 degrees is just one of many all-time March records toppled in Asia

The explosive battle to build Iraq's Halgurd-Sakran National Park

The disturbing link between environmental racism and criminalization

How powerful institutions are criminalizing populations by locking people up and deeming them undeserving of clean air, water and healthy housing.

Bhopal nocturne

35 years after the chemical industry's worst accident, have we learned any lessons? A petrochemical buildout along the Ohio River suggests we haven't.

Federal tests 'dramatically' undercount BPA and other chemical exposures

Researchers say federal agencies use highly inaccurate tests to estimate exposure to BPA—findings that extend to multiple other harmful chemicals that get into our bodies

Exposed: A scientific stalemate leaves our hormones and health at risk

American industry, aided by federal regulators, is conducting a large-scale, consequential experiment with our hormones and the developing brains and reproductive systems of our children.

Exposed: How willful blindness keeps BPA on shelves and contaminating our bodies

EHN.org investigation finds regulatory push to discredit independent evidence of harm while favoring pro-industry science despite significant shortcomings.

Coraopolis drinking water shows PFAS contamination among highest in Pennsylvania, but below federal advisory

PFAS contamination has previously been found at two nearby military bases.

Researchers find radioactive compounds and elevated risk of health disorders in Iraqi children living near a U.S. Army base

How powerful institutions are criminalizing populations by locking people up and deeming them undeserving of clean air, water and healthy housing.

35 years after the chemical industry's worst accident, have we learned any lessons? A petrochemical buildout along the Ohio River suggests we haven't.

Researchers say federal agencies use highly inaccurate tests to estimate exposure to BPA—findings that extend to multiple other harmful chemicals that get into our bodies

American industry, aided by federal regulators, is conducting a large-scale, consequential experiment with our hormones and the developing brains and reproductive systems of our children.

EHN.org investigation finds regulatory push to discredit independent evidence of harm while favoring pro-industry science despite significant shortcomings.

PFAS contamination has previously been found at two nearby military bases.

Above The Fold

Above the Fold