> The Semipalatinsk test site ruined the health of so many Kazakhs

that cannot be true. It was really middle of the semi-desert with no people around

You’re mistaken. They purposefully didn’t evacuate villages so the doctors could study the health effects on unknowing citizens. The radioactive dust traveled for miles and miles. Semey, a medium sized town near the test site had skyrocketing cancer rates and birth defects. The number of people affected is measured in the hundreds of thousands. Read “The Atomic Steppe” if you want to learn more.