Andre Marin, Canada's government-appointed military ombudsman, said he had decided to launch an investigation "given the systematic nature of these complaints" from troops returning from duty.

In recent years, many Canadian soldiers have complained of mystery illnesses after serving in places such as Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda.

"This investigation will examine how the CF (Canadian Forces) handles those who are deployed to a theatre of operations fit and healthy but who begin showing symptoms of illness during deployment or shortly after their return home," Marin said here.

Many soldiers have returned home complaining of illnesses they believed were caused by environmental problems and even by vaccinations designed to protect them from environmental problems.

Among their complaints is that these illnesses are dismissed too easily as imagined or lacking proof that they were linked with military service.

Marin said this was where he would focus his investigation.

"My team will not, for example, attempt to prove a link between depleted uranium and the symptoms some soldiers have shown since their return to Canada," he said.

"We will not debate the merits of Gulf War syndrome, or whether vaccinations cause illnesses."

Instead, he said, "my job is to make sure CF members and their families are dealt with fairly."

WAR.WIRE