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Baghdad: Two children have died on Sunday and half a dozen are in serious condition after eating cake that had been poisoned.
The British government has flown antidote medicine to the Middle East after some Iraqis became seriously ill after eating cakes laced with the poison thallium on Sunday.
It is the first time the deadly toxin has been used since the downfall of Saddam Hussain, whose regime used it to kill its opponents.
At least two of the poison victims, the secretary of the Iraqi air force club and his daughter, are critically ill in Amman.
The patients suffering from thallium poisoning were flown from Baghdad to Amman for treatment.
Thallium is tasteless and its effects take some time to appear. It then causes a lingering and painful death. An antidote known as Prussian Blue can be effective if taken quickly.
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