AN inquest into the death of a Huddersfield soldier could be a landmark judgement which may have an impact on hundreds of other cases.

The hearing is finally to be held into the case of Major Ian Hill - 32 months after he lost his final battle with a terminal illness.

Ian's family are sure his death was due to Gulf War illness from 1991 and believe the inquest could finally mean Gulf War illness is a recognised condition.

Other inquests into the deaths of soldiers who became ill after the first Gulf War have ended in open verdicts.

But Major Hill's widow, 56-year-old Carole Avison, of Newsome, is anxious that the verdict on Ian will stipulate he died from a Gulf War illness.

If that happens, it will be a major triumph for campaigners.

She said: "The last few years have been hell. It has been such a struggle to get an inquest date."

A Manchester-based lawyer, Mark McGee, who is an expert on fighting Gulf War cases, will be representing Ian's family at the inquest.

The hearing will be held on November 24 and 25 at Warrington Coroner's Court in Cheshire because 54-year-old Ian died in Knutsford in March 2001 after moving there from his home in Dalton.

His mother and six of his eight brothers and sisters still live in Huddersfield.

Carole said: "We are hoping the inquest will be held in front of a jury. We want ordinary members of the public to hear all the evidence and then make a decision on how they think Ian died.

"We have many medical experts who will be giving evidence."

Carole, a qualified nurse, said Ian was fit and healthy when he went to the Gulf in 1991 to set up operating theatres in preparation for the war to force Iraqi forces out of Kuwait.

He was given 13 vaccinations in one morning and fell seriously ill within days.

He was flown back to the UK for treatment.

Over the next few years he suffered from several serious medical conditions and was diagnosed as terminally ill in 1994.

He needed 24-hour care as his health worsened and his son, Christopher, said he was in "absolute agony."

He was confined to a wheelchair with emphysema, a damaged nervous system and loss of feeling in his hands and feet.

Carole added: "Ian and I attended the funerals of so many other soldiers up to 2001.

"Ian was an expert witness at many inquests into their deaths about how the illness had affected them both physically and mentally."

Ian was a founder member and former chairman of the National Gulf Veterans' and Families' Association - and had long accused the Government of a whitewash over Gulf War illnesses.

He was the 527th Gulf War veteran to have died since April 1991 - and many more have died since.

About 3,000 veterans say they have suffered from Gulf War illnesses.

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