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"At a House hearing on June 7, Representative Cynthia McKinney,
Democrat of Georgia, referred to the document "Iraq Water Treatment
Vulnerabilities" and said: "Attacking the Iraqi public drinking
water supply flagrantly targets civilians and is a violation of
the Geneva Convention and of the fundamental laws of civilized
nations.""
The Progressive The Progressive | since 1909 The Progressive
The Secret Behind the Sanctions How the U.S. Intentionally Destroyed
Iraq's Water Supply
by Thomas J. Nagy
Over the last two years, I've discovered documents of the Defense
Intelligence Agency proving beyond a doubt that, contrary to the
Geneva Convention, the U.S. government intentionally used sanctions
against Iraq to degrade the country's water supply after the Gulf
War. The United States knew the cost that civilian Iraqis, mostly
children, would pay, and it went ahead anyway.
The primary document, "Iraq Water Treatment Vulnerabilities," is
dated January 22, 1991. It spells out how sanctions will prevent
Iraq from supplying clean water to its citizens.
"Iraq depends on importing specialized equipment and some chemicals
to purify its water supply, most of which is heavily mineralized
and frequently brackish to saline," the document states. "With no
domestic sources of both water treatment replacement parts and some
essential chemicals, Iraq will continue attempts to circumvent
United Nations Sanctions to import these vital commodities. Failing
to secure supplies will result in a shortage of pure drinking water
for much of the population. This could lead to increased incidences,
if not epidemics, of disease."
The document goes into great technical detail about the sources
and quality of Iraq's water supply. The quality of untreated water
"generally is poor," and drinking such water "could result in
diarrhea," the document says. It notes that Iraq's rivers "contain
biological materials, pollutants, and are laden with bacteria.
Unless the water is purified with chlorine, epidemics of such
diseases as cholera, hepatitis, and typhoid could occur."
The document notes that the importation of chlorine "has been
embargoed" by sanctions. "Recent reports indicate the chlorine
supply is critically low."
Food and medicine will also be affected, the document states. "Food
processing, electronic, and, particularly, pharmaceutical plants
require extremely pure water that is free from biological contaminants,"
it says.
The document addresses possible Iraqi countermeasures to obtain
drinkable water despite sanctions.
"Iraq conceivably could truck water from the mountain reservoirs
to urban areas. But the capability to gain significant quantities
is extremely limited," the document states. "The amount of pipe on
hand and the lack of pumping stations would limit laying pipelines
to these reservoirs. Moreover, without chlorine purification, the
water still would contain biological pollutants. Some affluent
Iraqis could obtain their own minimally adequate supply of good
quality water from Northern Iraqi sources. If boiled, the water
could be safely consumed. Poorer Iraqis and industries requiring
large quantities of pure water would not be able to meet their
needs."
The document also discounted the possibility of Iraqis using
rainwater. "Precipitation occurs in Iraq during the winter and
spring, but it falls primarily in the northern mountains," it says.
"Sporadic rains, sometimes heavy, fall over the lower plains. But
Iraq could not rely on rain to provide adequate pure water."
As an alternative, "Iraq could try convincing the United Nations
or individual countries to exempt water treatment supplies from
sanctions for humanitarian reasons," the document says. "It probably
also is attempting to purchase supplies by using some sympathetic
countries as fronts. If such attempts fail, Iraqi alternatives are
not adequate for their national requirements."
In cold language, the document spells out what is in store: "Iraq
will suffer increasing shortages of purified water because of the
lack of required chemicals and desalination membranes. Incidences
of disease, including possible epidemics, will become probable
unless the population were careful to boil water."
The document gives a timetable for the destruction of Iraq's water
supplies. "Iraq's overall water treatment capability will suffer
a slow decline, rather than a precipitous halt," it says. "Although
Iraq is already experiencing a loss of water treatment capability,
it probably will take at least six months (to June 1991) before
the system is fully degraded."
This document, which was partially declassified but unpublicized
in 1995, can be found on the Pentagon's web site at www.gulflink.osd.mil.
(I disclosed this document last fall. But the news media showed
little interest in it. The only reporters I know of who wrote
lengthy stories on it were Felicity Arbuthnot in the Sunday Herald
of Scotland, who broke the story, and Charlie Reese of the Orlando
Sentinel, who did a follow-up.)
Recently, I have come across other DIA documents that confirm the
Pentagon's monitoring of the degradation of Iraq's water supply.
These documents have not been publicized until now.
The first one in this batch is called "Disease Information," and
is also dated January 22, 1991. At the top, it says, "Subject:
Effects of Bombing on Disease Occurrence in Baghdad." The analysis
is blunt:
"Increased incidence of diseases will be attributable to degradation
of normal preventive medicine, waste disposal, water
purification/distribution, electricity, and decreased ability to
control disease outbreaks. Any urban area in Iraq that has received
infrastructure damage will have similar problems."
The document proceeds to itemize the likely outbreaks. It mentions
"acute diarrhea" brought on by bacteria such as E. coli, shigella,
and salmonella, or by protozoa such as giardia, which will affect
"particularly children," or by rotavirus, which will also affect
"particularly children," a phrase it puts in parentheses. And it
cites the possibilities of typhoid and cholera outbreaks.
The document warns that the Iraqi government may "blame the United
States for public health problems created by the military conflict."
The second DIA document, "Disease Outbreaks in Iraq," is dated
February 21, 1990, but the year is clearly a typo and should be
1991. It states: "Conditions are favorable for communicable disease
outbreaks, particularly in major urban areas affected by coalition
bombing." It adds: "Infectious disease prevalence in major Iraqi
urban areas targeted by coalition bombing (Baghdad, Basrah)
undoubtedly has increased since the beginning of Desert Storm. .
. .
Current public health problems are attributable to the reduction
of normal preventive medicine, waste disposal, water purification
and distribution, electricity, and the decreased ability to control
disease outbreaks."
This document lists the "most likely diseases during next sixty-ninety
days (descending order): diarrheal diseases (particularly children);
acute respiratory illnesses (colds and influenza); typhoid; hepatitis
A (particularly children); measles, diphtheria, and pertussis
(particularly children); meningitis, including meningococcal
(particularly children); cholera (possible, but less likely)."
Like the previous document, this one warns that the Iraqi government
might "propagandize increases of endemic diseases."
The third document in this series, "Medical Problems in Iraq," is
dated March 15, 1991. It says: "Communicable diseases in Baghdad
are more widespread than usually observed during this time of the
year and are linked to the poor sanitary conditions (contaminated
water supplies and improper sewage disposal) resulting from the
war.
According to a United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)/World Health
Organization report, the quantity of potable water is less than 5
percent of the original supply, there are no operational water and
sewage treatment plants, and the reported incidence of diarrhea is
four times above normal levels. Additionally, respiratory infections
are on the rise. Children particularly have been affected by these
diseases."
Perhaps to put a gloss on things, the document states, "There are
indications that the situation is improving and that the population
is coping with the degraded conditions." But it adds: "Conditions
in Baghdad remain favorable for communicable disease outbreaks."
The fourth document, "Status of Disease at Refugee Camps," is dated
May 1991. The summary says, "Cholera and measles have emerged at
refugee camps. Further infectious diseases will spread due to
inadequate water treatment and poor sanitation."
The reason for this outbreak is clearly stated again. "The main
causes of infectious diseases, particularly diarrhea, dysentery,
and upper respiratory problems, are poor sanitation and unclean
water.
These diseases primarily afflict the old and young children."
The fifth document, "Health Conditions in Iraq, June 1991," is
still heavily censored. All I can make out is that the DIA sent a
source "to assess health conditions and determine the most critical
medical needs of Iraq. Source observed that Iraqi medical system
was in considerable disarray, medical facilities had been extensively
looted, and almost all medicines were in critically short supply."
In one refugee camp, the document says, "at least 80 percent of
the population" has diarrhea. At this same camp, named Cukurca,
"cholera, hepatitis type B, and measles have broken out."
The protein deficiency disease kwashiorkor was observed in Iraq
"for the first time," the document adds. "Gastroenteritis was
killing children. . . . In the south, 80 percent of the deaths were
children (with the exception of Al Amarah, where 60 percent of
deaths were children)."
The final document is "Iraq: Assessment of Current Health Threats
and Capabilities," and it is dated November 15, 1991. This one has
a distinct damage-control feel to it. Here is how it begins:
"Restoration of Iraq's public health services and shortages of
major medical materiel remain dominant international concerns. Both
issues apparently are being exploited by Saddam Hussein in an effort
to keep public opinion firmly against the U.S. and its Coalition
allies and to direct blame away from the Iraqi government."
It minimizes the extent of the damage. "Although current countrywide
infectious disease incidence in Iraq is higher than it was before
the Gulf War, it is not at the catastrophic levels that some groups
predicted. The Iraqi regime will continue to exploit disease
incidence data for its own political purposes."
And it places the blame squarely on Saddam Hussein. "Iraq's medical
supply shortages are the result of the central government's
stockpiling, selective distribution, and exploitation of domestic
and international relief medical resources." It adds: "Resumption
of public health programs . . . depends completely on the Iraqi
government."
As these documents illustrate, the United States knew sanctions
had the capacity to devastate the water treatment system of Iraq.
It knew what the consequences would be: increased outbreaks of
disease and high rates of child mortality. And it was more concerned
about the public relations nightmare for Washington than the actual
nightmare that the sanctions created for innocent Iraqis.
The Geneva Convention is absolutely clear. In a 1979 protocol
relating to the "protection of victims of international armed
conflicts," Article 54, it states: "It is prohibited to attack,
destroy, remove, or render useless objects indispensable to the
survival of the civilian population, such as foodstuffs, crops,
livestock, drinking water installations and supplies, and irrigation
works, for the specific purpose of denying them for their sustenance
value to the civilian population or to the adverse Party, whatever
the motive, whether in order to starve out civilians, to cause them
to move away, or for any other motive."
But that is precisely what the U.S. government did, with malice
aforethought. It "destroyed, removed, or rendered useless" Iraq's
"drinking water installations and supplies." The sanctions, imposed
for a decade largely at the insistence of the United States,
constitute a violation of the Geneva Convention. They amount to a
systematic effort to, in the DIA's own words, "fully degrade" Iraq's
water sources.
At a House hearing on June 7, Representative Cynthia McKinney,
Democrat of Georgia, referred to the document "Iraq Water Treatment
Vulnerabilities" and said: "Attacking the Iraqi public drinking
water supply flagrantly targets civilians and is a violation of
the Geneva Convention and of the fundamental laws of civilized
nations."
Over the last decade, Washington extended the toll by continuing
to withhold approval for Iraq to import the few chemicals and items
of equipment it needed in order to clean up its water supply.
Last summer, Representative Tony Hall, Democrat of Ohio, wrote to
then-Secretary of State Madeleine Albright "about the profound
effects of the increasing deterioration of Iraq's water supply and
sanitation systems on its children's health." Hall wrote, "The
prime killer of children under five years of age--diarrheal
diseases--has reached epidemic proportions, and they now strike
four times more often than they did in 1990. . . . Holds on contracts
for the water and sanitation sector are a prime reason for the
increases in sickness and death. Of the eighteen contracts, all
but one hold was placed by the U.S. government. The contracts are
for purification chemicals, chlorinators, chemical dosing pumps,
water tankers, and other equipment. . . . I urge you to weigh your
decision against the disease and death that are the unavoidable
result of not having safe drinking water and minimum levels of
sanitation."
For more than ten years, the United States has deliberately pursued
a policy of destroying the water treatment system of Iraq, knowing
full well the cost in Iraqi lives. The United Nations has estimated
that more than 500,000 Iraqi children have died as a result of
sanctions, and that 5,000 Iraqi children continue to die every
month for this reason.
No one can say that the United States didn't know what it was doing.
See for Yourself
All the DIA documents mentioned in this article were found at the
Department of Defense's Gulflink site.
To read or print documents:
1.go to www.gulflink.osd.mil
2.click on "Declassified Documents" on the left side of the front
page
3.the next page is entitled "Browse Recently Declassified Documents"
4.click on "search" under "Declassifed Documents" on the left side
of that page
5.the next page is entitled "Search Recently Declassified Documents"
6.enter search terms such as "disease information effects of bombing"
7.click on the search button
8.the next page is entitled "Data Sources"
9.click on DIA
10.click on one of the titles
It's not the easiest, best-organized site on the Internet, but I
have found the folks at Gulflink to be helpful and responsive.
Thomas J. Nagy
_______________________________________________________________
Thomas J. Nagy teaches at the School of Business and Public Management
at George Washington University.
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