COMMUNICATION AND INFORMATION CENTRE FACTS ABOUT IRAQ CHEMICAL WEAPONS

Iraq made frequent use of chemical weapons during the Iran-Iraq war and again in 1988 against the Kurdish population in Northern Iraq. The chemical agents known to have been used by Iraq include mustard gas, sarin and tabun. Iraq has also admitted to the production of the more deadly nerve agent VX.

MUSTARD GAS

· Mustard gas is a liquid agent which attacks the skin and eyes causing eye irritation, sore throat, sneezing and coughing. Within one day skin rashes and blisters appear.

· If inhaled, it causes severe damage to the lungs and other organs.

· Its effects are disabling but not usually fatal. But it is one of the best known chemical weapons as it is easier to deliver than other agents. Iraq has used it in combination with more fatal agents.

SARIN AND TABUN

· Sarin and tabun are nerve agents which disrupt the nervous system and overstimulate muscles and vital organs.

· High doses are fatal – death is caused by the paralysis of the muscles around the lungs.

· One drop of sarin will kill the average person within a few hours. It is 500 times more deadly than cyanide.

· Sarin has been used by Iraq in combination with mustard gas, resulting in 20,000 Iranian casualties during the Iran-Iraq war and up to 5,000 civilian casualties in 1988 amongst the Kurdish population.

· Sarin was also used in 1995 by the Aum cult to attack the Tokyo underground, resulting in 12 deaths and over 5,000 casualties.

VX

· A nerve agent which acts in a similar way to sarin and tarun.

· But far more deadly. One drop absorbed through the skin is fatal – 100 times more deadly than sarin.

· Iraq has admitted to the production of VX agent although there is no evidence of them having used the agent in a weapon.

At the end of 1998, Iraq’s persistent obstruction of the work of the UN inspectors finally forced them to leave. Because of Iraq’s false declarations to the UN, the inspectors were still unable to account for:

· up to 3,000 tonnes of precursor chemicals (approximately 300 tonnes of which, in the Iraqi CW programme, were unique to the production of VX nerve agent);

· up to 360 tonnes of bulk CW agent (including 1.5 tonnes of VX;

· over 30,000 special munitions for delivery of chemical and biological agents;