IRAQ CHEMICAL WEAPONS

File: 070296_cia_73922_73922_01.txt
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Subject: IRAQ CHEMICAL WEAPONS

Not Finally Evaluated Intelligence







TO FACILITATE ELECTRONIC ACCESS, THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN

REFORMATTED TO ELIMINATE INFORMATION THAT DOES NOT PERTAIN

TO GULF WAR ILLNESS ISSUES OR THAT IS CLASSIFIED. A COPY OF

THIS REDACTED DOCUMENT, IN ORIGINAL FORMAT, IS AVAILABLE ON

REQUEST.







CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY

WASHINGTON, D.C.



20 FEBRUARY 1991



MEMORANDUM



SUBJECT:  IRAQI USE OF CHEMICAL WEAPONS IN THE WAR WITH IRAN





1. WE ESTIMATE THAT IRAN SUFFERED MORE THAN 50,000

CASUALTIES--INCLUDING THOUSANDS OF FATALITIES--FROM CHEMICAL

WEAPONS IN THE WAR WITH IRAQ.



2. IRAQ'S EFFECTIVE USE OF CW IMPROVED DURING THE COURSE

OF THE WAR. FROM 1983 THROUGH EARLY 1986, THE IRAQIS

FREQUENTLY USED AGENTS UNDER UNSUITABLE WEATHER CONDITIONS,

WITH WIND CARRYING THE AGENT TOWARD THEIR OWN TROOPS. IRAQI

PILOTS OFTEN RELEASED CHEMICAL MUNITIONS FROM ALTITUDES TOO

HIGH TO PERMIT ACCURATE, CONCENTRATED STRIKES. FROM LATE 1986

TO EARLY 1988, HOWEVER, CHEMICAL WEAPONS WERE USED EFFECTIVELY

AGAINST STAGING AREAS TO PREEMPT IRANIAN OFFENSIVES. IRAQ ALSO

BEGAN TO INTEGRATE CW INTO ITS SUCCESSFUL BATTLEFIELD TACTICS,

USING MASSED NERVE AGENT STRIKES AS AN INTEGRAL PART OF

OFFENSIVES.







3. IRAQ'S CHEMICAL WEAPONS WERE EFFECTIVE IN LARGE

MEASURE BECAUSE THE IRANIANS WERE NOT PREPARED OR TRAINED TO

FIGHT IN A CHEMICAL ENVIRONMENT. MANY IRANIANS LACKED

PROTECTIVE MASKS, AND SOME OF THOSE WHO HAD MASKS COULD NOT

OBTAIN A PROPER FIT BECAUSE OF THEIR BEARDS.







MEMORANDUM



SUBJECT:  IRAQI USE OF CHEMICAL WEAPONS IN THE

IRAN-IRAQ WAR





1. MORE THAN 10,000 CASUALTIES--INCLUDING THOUSANDS OF

FATALITIES--MAY HAVE RESULTED FROM IRAQ'S USE OF CHEMICAL

WEAPONS IN THE WAR WITH IRAN.







2.  IRAQ'S CW EFFECTIVENESS IMPROVED DURING THE COURSE

OF THE WAR. IRAQ'S INITIAL USE OF CW--FROM 1983 THROUGH

EARLY 1986--OFTEN WAS INEFFECTIVE, GENERALLY AS A RESULT OF

POOR TECHNIQUES. FOR EXAMPLE, THE IRAQIS USED AGENTS UNDER

UNSUITABLE WEATHER CONDITIONS, WHEN WIND CARRIED AGENT

TOWARD THEIR OWN TROOPS. IRAQI PILOTS OFTEN RELEASED

CHEMICAL MUNITIONS FROM ALTITUDES TOO HIGH TO PERMIT

ACCURATE, CONCENTRATED STRIKES. FROM LATE 1986 TO EARLY

1988, IRAQ USED CHEMICAL WEAPONS PREEMPTIVELY AGAINST

STAGING AREAS PRIOR TO IRANIAN OFFENSIVES, WHILE CONTINUING

ALSO TO RELY ON THEM TO DISRUPT THE OFFENSIVES. IN 1988,

IRAQ BEGAN TO FULLY INTEGRATE CW INTO ITS SUCCESSFUL

BATTLEFIELD TACTICS, USING MASSED NERVE AGENT STRIKES AS AN

INTEGRAL PART OF OFFENSIVES.







5. IRAQ'S USE OF CHEMICAL WEAPONS WAS EFFECTIVE

PRIMARILY BECAUSE THE IRANIANS WERE NOT ADEQUATELY PREPARED

OR TRAINED TO FIGHT IN A CHEMICAL ENVIRONMENT. MANY

IRANIANS LACKED PROTECTIVE MASKS, AND MANY OTHERS WHO HAD

MASKS COULD NOT OBTAIN A PROPER FIT BECAUSE OF THEIR BEARDS.

IRAQ'S CHEMICAL WEAPONS SHOULD BE LESS EFFECTIVE AGAINST US

TROOPS--WHO HAVE TRAINED EXTENSIVELY FOR OPERATIONS IN A

CONTAMINATED ENVIRONMENT--THAN THEY WERE AGAINST THE

RELATIVELY UNPREPARED IRANIANS .



6. IN GENERAL, THE NUMBER OF CASUALTIES FROM A

CHEMICAL ATTACK DEPENDS ON THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE IN THE

CONTAMINATED AREA, DEGREE OF PROTECTION, WEATHER CONDITIONS,

AND THE AMOUNT AND TOXICITY OF THE AGENT USED. FOR EXAMPLE,

FOUR AERIAL BOMBS--EACH FILLED WITH 100 KILOGRAMS OF THE

NONPERSISENT NERVE AGENT SARIN--WOULD CONTAMINATE AN AREA

OF ABOUT THREE SQUARE KILOMETERS.







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