How is depleted uranium ammunition somehow permitted by the rules of war?

Question

http://www.gulflink.osd.mil/faq_17apr.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depleted_uranium
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs257/en/
http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/land/du.htm
http://www.cadu.org.uk/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_depth/europe/2001/depleted_uranium/default.stm
http://www.sundayherald.com/32522
http://www.stopnato.org.uk/du-watch/
http://www.bushflash.com/pl_lo.html

Answer 1

It is justified by denying that it is dangerous to civilians.

Answer 2

Why should it be?
It is used for armor ....among other things.
Why would the "rules of war" not allow armor?

excerpt from wikipedia
Some of the central principles underlying laws of war are:

* Wars should be limited to achieving the political goals that started the war (e.g., territorial control) and should not include unnecessary destruction
* Wars should be brought to an end as quickly as possible
* People and property that do not contribute to the war effort be protected against unnecessary destruction and hardship

To this end, laws of war are intended to mitigate the evils of war by:

* Protecting both combatants and noncombatants from unnecessary suffering;
* Safeguarding certain fundamental human rights of persons who fall into the hands of the enemy, particularly prisoners of war, the wounded and sick, and civilians; and
* Facilitating the restoration of peace.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rules_of_war

Answer 3

Excellent question. My Uncle and a group of engineers worked on the missile launchers from Desert Storm(the first Bush action) to determine why they failed...these machines had held depleted uranium missiles. This Uncle has 75% bone loss in all his long bones plus spinal compaction and he is the only one still alive (from a group of over 50)that dealt with these launchers...yes, they all died from cancer and various horrible things. The government denies culpability as they were a Consultants ... but then again there is NO gulf war syndrome and there was nothing wrong with agent orange either as I recall...

Answer 4

Because all of the claims about how horrible this material is are based on a complete ignorance of physics and chemistry.

Answer 5

It has to do with the kinetic energy of an extremely dense material. It has nothing to do with radiation, hence the term 'depleted.'

Answer 6

It's awar crime both which affects both sides

Answer 7

it works and it is cheaper so it is easy to justify