LONDON (AP) — A prominent veterans' organization is urging the British government to do more to help those who served in the 1991 Gulf war.

The Royal British Legion says as many as 33,000 former soldiers could be suffering from illnesses linked to their Persian Gulf deployment in Operation Desert Storm, a U.S.-led operation to drive Iraqi forces from Kuwait.

The legion said Sunday that research in the United States, Australia and Canada has found that Gulf veterans suffer illnesses at about two to three times the rate of other veterans. The organization cited chronic fatigue, muscle pain, cognitive problems, rashes and diarrhea among the symptoms suffered by veterans and wants Britain's government to carry out more research.

There were 53,462 members of the British armed forces deployed in Operation Desert Storm.