Gulf troop exposure to chemical arms charged

U.S. troops were exposed to harmful levels of chemical and, possibly, biological warfare agents during the Persian Gulf War, and such exposures may have contributed to some of the "Gulf War syndrome" problems now reported by thousands of veterans, contends a Senate committee report released last week. But muddling an already confused picture, military and intelligence agencies continue to insist they have no physical or intelligence information to support Iraqi use of these weapons during the war. In releasing the report at a hearing before the banking committee, which he chairs, Sen. Donald W. Riegle Jr. (D.Mich.) noted that the weapons allegedly deployed by Iraq may have been produced from dual-use chemicals and technology, and from biological materials sold by U.S. firms under legal Commerce Department export licenses. However, biological weapons were never detected during the war, and the only confirmed detection of chemical agents was by Czech troops. Riegle is using his committee's jurisdiction ...