Hmm, this story really concerns me. I'm not an expert in this area so I can only pray this isn't indicative of a longerterm potential threat to our troops.

U.S. parents say son in Iraq was casualty of chemical weapons
By Charles Laurence
LONDON SUNDAY TELEGRAPH

The parents of an American soldier who died in Iraq after contracting a mysterious pneumonialike illness that ravaged his major organs are convinced that their son stumbled across deadly chemical weapons while clearing rubble from one of Saddam Hussein's palaces.

Spc. Josh Neusche, 20, who had been conducting cleanup operations in Baghdad, died July 12 after being transferred from his base at the airport to a U.S. military hospital in Germany.

Army specialists are analyzing tissue samples from his liver, kidneys and lungs to determine the cause of death.

Two U.S. soldiers serving in Iraq have died after their major organs failed. Seven others have reported similarly serious symptoms, although overall about 100 cases have been diagnosed since March 1.

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