US fires depleted uranium in Syria

The news came as governments were debating a UN General Assembly resolution on DU weapons in New York. And, although DU use has only been admitted on two dates, there is concerned that this disclosure could be the sign that DU has, or will, be used more widely in the conflict.

In March 2015, and following the deployment of A-10s to the conflict, the US had confirmed to journalists that the aircraft would not be armed with DU, stating: “U.S. and Coalition aircraft have not been and will not be using depleted uranium munitions in Iraq or Syria during Operation Inherent Resolve.” Justifying the decision, CENTCOM public affairs explained that:  “The ammunition is developed to destroy tanks on a conventional battlefield; Daesh does not possess large numbers of tanks.”

The US regularly states that DU ammunition is specifically used only for engaging armoured targets, in accordance with its own legal guidelines, although evidence from a number of conflicts has shown that these guidelines are commonly ignored. ICBUW had earlier analysed the target information released by CENTCOM for the two dates in question. On neither date did CENTCOM explicitly state that it had launched attacks against armoured vehicles, with the majority of strikes against Islamic State light tactical vehicles, vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices and oil infrastructure. Such targets have been attacked regularly by the US-led Coalition, apparently without resorting to the use of DU.

The most unusual strike that ICBUW identified took place on the 18th November, when the US attacked 283 parked oil tankers, however the A-10’s alternative 30mm ammunition type – a high explosive incendiary round – would presumably have been sufficient to destroy tankers laden with oil.  Footage released from the strike is indicative of 30mm DU use.

Recently published data from the 2003 Iraq War showed that A-10s used more DU against targets that were not tanks or armoured vehicles, questioning the current US justification that DU was needed in Syria. Historic data from the Gulf War also demonstrated that most armoured targets destroyed by A-10s were targeted by Maverick missiles, not DU.

Question in the Belgian parliament showed that the US had not informed its coalition partners that it had used DU in Syria in 2015. The question has particular resonance for Belgium because in 2007 it became the first country to ban the use of the weapons, a ban that entered into force in 2009.

The coalition assembled to tackle Islamic State in Iraq and Syria currently has 64 members. Among this number are several that have been affected by DU weapons, including Bosnia, Kosovo, Kuwait, Iraq and Serbia; a number of countries that have expressed concerns over the weapons domestically and at international fora such as Jordan, Norway, Panama, Finland and the Netherlands; and four - Iraq, Serbia, Oman and Qatar - that have publicly called for the weapons to be subject to an international ban.

A joint investigation by Airwars and Foreign Policy was published in February 2017 finally confirmed that the US used DU in Syria, and that in both cases the targets were large convoys of fuel tankers. A decision appears to have been made during planning for the two operations against the fuel convoys that DU was needed, to ensure what a CENTCOM spokesperson said was a: “higher probability of destruction for targets.” The first strike on November 16 would see 1,490 DU rounds used – equating to 432kg of DU; the second, on November 22 saw 3,775 rounds used – some 1,095kg of DU. Bombs, rockets and missiles were also used in the two strikes which, according to CENTCOM, destroyed 116 and 283 fuel tankers respectively.

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