WASHINGTON (AP) -- A research panel has concluded that federal research has not adequately tackled finding treatments for veterans afflicted by a collection of symptoms commonly called Gulf War illness. This even as potentially hundreds of thousands of veterans continue to suffer nearly two decades since the end of the conflict.

In a report obtained by The Associated Press, the panel recommends a minimum of $60 million be spent annually for Gulf War research. It called that a "national obligation."

The panel said the Defense Department has dramatically cut funding for Gulf War research from $30 million a year in 2001 to under $5 million in 2006. It said both the Pentagon and the Veterans Affairs Department have identified studies as Gulf War research that wasn't completely focused on the issue.

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