MoD appeals against Gulf War Syndrome ruling
Ananova 02/04/03
Original Link: http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_747157.html?menu=news.latestheadlines
A landmark ruling which officially recognised for the first time that Gulf War Syndrome does exist, has been challenged by the MoD in the High Court.
It is appealing against a war pensions tribunal decision made in relation to former Parachute Regiment medical officer Shaun Rusling.
He suffers from a range of illnesses and is said to be a victim of an identifiable syndrome attributable to his service in the 1991 conflict.
The ruling, by a tribunal in Leeds last May, was hailed by thousands of Gulf War veterans as a significant development in their fight to force the MoD to accept their claim that their illnesses were caused by a common factor.
More than 2,000 Gulf War veterans are waiting for the go-ahead to sue for compensation.
However, the MoD has said, after numerous research studies in Britain and America, there is no evidence of a common illness directly attributable to the Gulf War.
As the MoD's appeal opened in London, Paul Tyler MP, Liberal Democrat shadow leader of the House and a member of the Royal British Legion Gulf War Group, said the decision to resist the tribunal's ruling was "scandalous".
"At a time when British troops are being prepared for a new war against Iraq, it is not only insensitive, but frankly scandalous that the MoD refuses to recognise the illnesses of Gulf War veterans," he said.
