'They poisoned us': Four million deaths linked to nuclear tests since 1945, global report finds

People take pictures in front of the Peace Statue in Nagasaki Peace Park on August 8, 2025 ahead of the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki. (Photo by Philip FONG / AFP)

A Norwegian People’s Aid report estimates nuclear weapons testing caused four million premature deaths globally, linking decades of radioactive fallout to cancers and other illnesses. The effects persist, with secrecy and lack of accountability hindering justice.

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Decades of nuclear weapons testing have left a vast and largely unacknowledged human toll, contributing to an estimated four million premature deaths worldwide, according to a new report by Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) shared exclusively with AFP.

Between 1945 and 2017, more than 2,400 nuclear devices were detonated in tests conducted by nuclear powers across multiple continents. While only North Korea has carried out tests in recent decades, the report warns that the fallout from earlier explosions continues to affect people today, regardless of where they live.

“Past nuclear testing continues to kill today,” said Raymond Johansen, secretary general of Norwegian People’s Aid, adding that the findings should reinforce global efforts to prevent any return to nuclear testing or use.

A legacy of illness and radiation

The report links radioactive exposure from decades of testing to cancers, cardiovascular disease, genetic damage, birth defects and long-term psychological trauma. Many of these illnesses surface years or even decades after exposure, making accountability and treatment harder.

“They poisoned us,” said Hinamoeura Cross, a Tahitian lawmaker, recalling France’s final nuclear test near her home in French Polynesia in 1996. Diagnosed with leukemia 17 years later, Cross said several members of her family had already suffered from thyroid cancer.

“These weren’t just tests. They were real bombs,” she said, accusing authorities of treating local populations as “guinea pigs.”

France carried out 193 nuclear explosions in French Polynesia between 1966 and 1996, some far more powerful than the Hiroshima bomb.

A global impact, not a local one

While communities near test sites across 15 countries, many of them former colonies, have suffered the most direct harm, the report stresses that the consequences are global.

“Every person alive today carries radioactive isotopes from atmospheric testing in their bones,” said Magdalena Stawkowski, a co-author of the study and an anthropology professor at the University of South Carolina.

Public health expert Tilman Ruff of the University of Melbourne said atmospheric tests conducted up to 1980 alone are projected to cause at least two million excess cancer deaths, along with a similar number of early deaths from heart disease and strokes.

“There is no safe level of exposure,” Ruff said, noting that foetuses and young children are especially vulnerable. The report adds that women and girls face significantly higher risks of radiation-related cancers.

Secrecy, silence and accountability gaps

A recurring theme is secrecy. In places such as Kiribati and Algeria, key data on contamination remains classified, limiting access to healthcare, screening and compensation. No nuclear-armed country has formally apologised for its testing programmes, the report notes, and compensation schemes often prioritise limiting state liability.

The findings have gained urgency after comments by US President Donald Trump last year suggesting the United States could resume nuclear testing, an idea rejected by Russia and China.

“The consequences are long-lasting and severe,” said Ivana Hughes of Columbia University and the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation. “The nuclear testing era shows us just how deep and persistent the harm can be.”