1980's
In a detailed policy paper for the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, W. Seth Carus outlines Iraq's existing chemical and biological weapons programs. Carus asserts that although Iraq was interested in CW since the 1960's, a conclusive effort was not underway until 1974 when a high-level decision to undertake a CW program was made. The Iraqi CW program was placed under the authority of the Ministry of Industry and Military Industries, headed by Saddam Hussayn's son-in-law Hussayn Kamil. Carus concludes that as a result of Iraqi efforts, the country was able to produce approximately 60 tons of sulfur mustard (HD] annually at a small plant near Sammara. Iraq imported the key precursor for producing sulfur mustard, thiodiglycol, from Western sources. According to Carus, Iraq developed the ability to indigenously produce its own thiodiglycol, which is a key component for CW and a dual use chemical. Iraq has also worked on nerve agents such as Sarin, Tabun and VX. Allegedly in the early 1980s West German firms helped build a pilot plant for producing Sarin and another for producing Tabun near Sammara. The nerve agent production program was relatively smaller in size, and hypothetical production stood around 100 tons of agent per year.
--W. Seth Carus, "The Genie Unleashed: Iraq's Chemical and Biological Weapons Production," Policy paper No. 14, Washington Institute for Near East Policy, July 1989.

Sept 1980
Iran-Iraq war begins.

16 November 1980
Iran publishes its first allegation of an Iraqi CW attack.
--Gordon M. Burck and Charles C. Flowerree, International Handbook on Chemical Weapons Proliferation, (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1991), p.32.

1981
Production of phosphates begins at the Akashat phosphate mine near Syria capable of producing 1.7 million tons of phosphate a year.
[Note: This is followed by processing and support industrial complexes at al-Qaim, and fertilizer complexes at Baiji and Bara. These additions spanned the decade and represent the bulk of Iraq's phosphorus-based chemical industry which has the potential to be harnessed in the production of chemical agents for a CW program especially the production of nerve agents.]
--Bureau of Mines, U.S. Department of the Interior, Phosphate Availability: A Minerals Availability Appraisal, Information Circular 9187 (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1988), p. 37.; Middle East Economic Digest, 11 April, 1987, p. 13., Middle East Economic Digest, 27 May 1988, p. 13.

1981
According to another source, production of the blister agent sulfur mustard (HD) reportedly begins.
--"Chemical Weapons Programs- Iraq special Weapons Facilities", Federation of American Scientists website, <www.fas.org/nuke/guide/iraq/cw/program.htm>.

1981
Iraq signs a secret agreement with Egypt, under which Iraq reportedly gives Egypt $12 million to expand its CW capabilities. In return Iraq would assist Egypt with production and storage of CW agents, establishing chemical manufacturing facilities and help purchase raw materials for the production of CW agents.
--Dany Shoham," Chemical and Biological Weapons in Egypt," Nonproliferation Review, Vol. 5, No. 3 (Spring-Summer 1998), p. 51.

1982
British sources sell 76 chemical protection suits to Iraq.
--Appendices to the "Report of the Inquiry into the Export of Defence Equipment and Dual-Use Goods to Iraq and Related Prosecutions" laid before The House on 15 February 1996, Volume One, Section D, "Arms and Defence-Related Exports to Iraq", Chapter 2 Applications of The Guidelines in the period December 1984 to August 1988.

July 1982
Iraq uses riot control agents (CS) against Iranian troops.
--Andrew Rathmell, "Iran's Weapons of Mass Destruction," Jane's Intelligence Review, Special Report No. 6, June 1995, p. 15.

December 1982
Iraq begins to use mustard agent against Iranian forces.
--Anthony Cordesman, "Creating Weapons of Mass Destruction," Armed Forces Journal International 126 (February 1989), p. 56.

1982-1983
Al-Muthanna becomes operational with five dedicated research and development sections, each pursuing its own program. The complex begins to mature into the leading chemical agent production and weaponization facility.
[Note: It is not clear from this report on what specific programs each section is working.]
--Iraq's Weapons of Mass Destruction: The Assessment of the British Government. 2002, p.11.

1982
Iraq signs a contract with West Germany to buy a large amount of equipment for the production of chemical weapons. No further details are specified.
--"The Development of Iraq's Nuclear and Biochemical Weapons," Shijie Zhishi, 16 January 1999; in FBIS Document FTS19990214000047, 16 January 1999.

1980s
Chemical development at al-Muthanna is supported by storage and precursor facilities Fallujah 1, 2 and 3 near Habbaniyah.
--Iraq's Weapons of Mass Destruction: The Assessment of the British Government. 2002, p. 11.

1983
The German Quast Company subcontracts to Kulb to provide reactor vessels, piping, and centrifuges for a pilot production plant in al-Samarra.
[Note: Centrifuges are generally associated with BW-related research as well as other legitimate activities. Though this entry does not necessarily point to any illicit transactions, it demonstrates existing scientific trade ties between the two states.]
--Anthony Cordesman, "Creating Weapons of Mass Destruction," Armed Forces Journal International 126 (February 1989), p. 56.

1983
Iraq tests some of the CW agents, produced in Akashat, on Kurds captured by Iraqi forces. Several prisoners reportedly died as a result of these experiments.
--Adel Darwish and Gregory Alexander, Unholy Babylon: The Secret History of Saddam's War, (London: Victor Gollancz Ltd., 1991), p.109.

July 1983
KBS Holland BV supplies 500 tons of thiodiglycol, a chemical which can be used to produce sulfur mustard agent, for approximately ₤500,000 ($329,900 in 1983) to Iraq's State Enterprise for the Production of Pesticides (SEPP). KBS acquired the thiodiglycol from a Belgian subsidiary of Phillips Petroleum USA.
--Adel Darwish and Gregory Alexander, Unholy Babylon: The Secret History of Saddam's War, (London: Victor Gollancz LTD, 1991), p. 105.

July 1983
Iraq uses mustard agent against Iranian forces in the fighting near Haj Umran. The attack fails due to unfamiliarity with the agent's characteristics.
--Stephen C. Pelletiere and Douglas V. Johnson II, Lessons Learned: The Iran-Iraq War, Strategic Studies Institute, U.S. Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, 1991, p. 97.

August 1983 – Late 1986
Saddam Hussayn holds exclusive authority to release chemical weapons. A request can be made by General Staff, corps commanders or division commanders, but all decisions have to be approved by Hussayn.
--Timothy V. McCarthy and Jonathan B. Tucker, "Saddam's Toxic Arsenal: Chemical and Biological Weapons in the Gulf Wars," in Peter R. Lavoy, Scott D. Sagan and James Wirtz (eds.), Planning the Unthinkable (Cornell University Press, 2000), pp. 47-78.

September 1983
Iraq signs a second contract with a subsidiary of Karl Kolb for two larger pilot plants to produce chemical agents.
--Gordon M. Burck and Charles C. Flowerree, International Handbook on Chemical Weapons Proliferation, (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1991), p. 32.

November 1983
The Iraqis fire large quantities of mustard agent on the attacking Iranians at Penjwin.
--Stephen C. Pelletiere and Douglas V. Johnson II, Lessons Learned: The Iran-Iraq War, Strategic Studies Institute, U.S. Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, 1991, p. 98.

3 November 1983
Iran formally submits its first allegation of Iraqi chemical weapons use to the United Nations' Security Council.
--Gordon M. Burck and Charles C. Flowerree, International Handbook on Chemical Weapons Proliferation, (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1991), p.32.

Late 1983
An order for 500 tons of thiodiglycol, 200 tons of trimethyl phosphate, 250 tons of phosphorous oxychloride and 200 tons of potassium fluoride is placed by the Iraqis with KBS Holland but was cancelled due to Dutch government pressure.
[Note: All of the agents listed above are used in the synthesis of CW agents.]
--Adel Darwish and Gregory Alexander, Unholy Babylon: The Secret History of Saddam's War, (London: Victor Gollancz LTD, 1991), p. 105.

1984
Production begins of Tabun(GA) and Sarin(GB).
--"Chemical Weapons Programs- Iraq special Weapons Facilities", Federation of American Scientists' website, <www.fas.org/nuke/guide/iraq/cw/program.htm>.

1984
Iraq begins to use Tabun in relatively small amounts. U.N. investigations after the 1984 attacks confirm that Iraq was using Tabun against Iran.
--Anthony Cordesman, "Creating Weapons of Mass Destruction, Armed Forces Journal International 126 (February 1989), p. 56.

1984
According to Iraqi defector Khidhir Hamza, about 100 Shiite prisoners are taken to the plant at Al-Samara, were they are subjected to chemical agents.
--Khidhir Hamza with Jeff Stein, Saddam's Bombmaker: The Terrifying Inside Story of the Iraqi Nuclear and Biological Weapons Agenda, (New York: Scribner, 2000), p. 199.

Early 1984
The Iraqi State Ministry of Pesticide Production places a second order for 500 metric tons of thiodiglycol with Phillips. The company, however, grows suspicious, cancels the order and notifies the Belgium government, which cancels Phillips' license to produce the chemical.
[Note: this is most likely the same case as reported in the "late 1983" entry.]
--Anthony Cordesman, "Creating Weapons of Mass Destruction, Armed Forces Journal International 126 (February 1989), p.56.

February 1984
Iraq attacks Iran with mustard agent and may have used the nerve agent Tabun.
--Stephen C. Pelletiere and Douglas V. Johnson II, Lessons Learned: The Iran-Iraq War, Strategic Studies Institute, U.S. Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, 1991, p. 98.

February 1984
U.S. Customs at New York's Kennedy Airport stop an order addressed to the Iraqi State Enterprise for Pesticide Production for 74 drums of potassium fluoride, a chemical used in the production of Sarin. The order was places by Al-Haddad Enterprises Incorporates, owned by an individual named Sahib al-Haddad.
--Adel Darwish and Gregory Alexander, Unholy Babylon: The Secret History of Saddam's War, (London: Victor Gollancz Ltd., 1991), p.105; Anthony Cordesman, "Creating Weapons of Mass Destruction, Armed Forces Journal International 126 (February 1989), p. 56.

21 February 1984
Iraqi military spokesman states, "the [Iranian] invaders should know that for every harmful insect there is an insecticide capable of annihilating it whatever their number and Iraq possesses this annihilation insecticide."
--"Iraqi Warning re Iranian Offensive," Memorandum from the U.S. Embassy in Iraq to the U.S. State Department, 22 February 1999, National Security Archive, box 7, record number 58480.

Feb-March 1984
Iraqis attack Iranian forces the area of Majnoon Island with mustard.
--"Anthony Cordesman, "Iraq's Search for Weapons of Mass Destruction", The Military Balance in the Middle East, Part XIV, CSIS, 6 Sept 1999, pp. 50-60.

March 1984
Reports surface accusing Italian and French firms of aiding Iraq with its chemical weapons technology. The firms deny the accusations.
--"Accusations Against Italian and French Firms for Supplying Chemical Warfare Technology to Iraq," Internal communication between the U.S. Embassy in Italy and the State Department, 14 March 1984.

12 March 1984
In a letter from the Permanent Representative of Iraq to the United Nations, Iraq denies use of CW, "those responsible in Iraq have confirmed the non-use of chemical weapons in the conflict with Iran."
--Letter from the Permanent Representative of Iraq to the United Nations to the Secretary General of the United Nations, 12 March 1984, National Security Archive, box 4, record number 58401.

13-19 March 1984
The U.N. conducts its first investigation regarding chemical weapons use. It confirms that mustard and Tabun were used.
--Andrew Koch, "USA, Israel Say Syria Continues with WMD," Jane's Defense Weekly, 11 October 2000, p. 32.

15 March 1984
In a press release Iraq denies that its Akashat Industrial Complex for Fertilizers produces chemical weapons. Iraqi Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, Subhy Yassin, told the Iraqi News Agency that the facility produces phosphate for the production of chemical fertilizers.
--Press Release by the Iraqi Press Office, the Iraqi Interests Section, Embassy of India, 15 March 1984, National Security Archive. Box 7, record number 58859.

23 March 1984
The Paris daily France Soir reports that the Iranians who were recently sent abroad for medical treatment for burns were the victims of an explosion at the Iranian Petro-Chemical Center in Khrobasht that took place on 18 February.
--Press Release by the Iraqi Press Office, the Iraqi Interests Section, Embassy of India, 23 March 1984, National Security Archive. Box 7, record number 58852.

26 March 1984
The U.N. issues its first report on the investigation of possible chemical weapons use by Iraq.
--Gordon M. Burck and Charles C. Flowerree, International Handbook on Chemical Weapons Proliferation, (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1991), p. 32.

30 March 1984
The U.S. bans export of five chemicals suitable for weapons to Iraq and Iran.
--Charles Z. Wick, "Alleges U.S. Mustard Shipments to Iraq Via Spain," United States Information Agency, sent to the United States Embassy in Spain, 25 June 1984, National Security Archive, box 7, record number 58488; Gordon M. Burck and Charles C. Flowerree, International Handbook on Chemical Weapons Proliferation, (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1991), p. 32.

10-11 April 1984
The United States, Britain, France, Japan, and later Australia, ban exports of certain chemicals to Iraq and Iran.
--Gordon M. Burck and Charles C. Flowerree, International Handbook on Chemical Weapons Proliferation, (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1991), p. 32; Lee Waters, "Chemical Weapons in the Iran Iraq War," Military Review, (October 1990), p. 59.

3 August and October 1984
German government experts inspect the al-Samarra plant.
--Gordon M. Burck and Charles C. Flowerree, International Handbook on Chemical Weapons Proliferation, (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1991), p. 32.

1985-1990
According to Iraqi declarations, it constructed three facilities (Fallujah 1, 2, and 3) and new production facilities at the al-Muthanna State Establishment to produce the nerve agent precursor chemicals: PCl₃, POCl₃, SOCl₂ and trimethyl phosphate (TMP).
--UNSCOM Report to the Security Council, 25 January 1999, Annex B: Status of Verification of Iraq's Chemical Weapons Programme, <http://www.fas.org/news/un/iraq/s/990125/dis-chem.htm>

November 1984 -January 1985
Dutch authorities obtain evidence that between November 1984 and January 1985 the Dutch company Melchemie BV had legally exported over 1200 tons of chloroethyl, dimethylamine, thiodiglycol, and 20,000 kg of phosphorous trichloride, all of which are used for the manufacture of chemical weapons.
--Adel Darwish and Gregory Alexander, Unholy Babylon: The Secret History of Saddam's War, (London: Victor Gollancz Ltd., 1991), p. 106.

February 1985
British authorities receive a request for insurance support for a British subsidiary of a West German company to design, build and commission a "Chlorine-Alkali-Electrolysis" plant in Iraq. The British government is not able to find substantial justification to block the contract.
--Appendices to the "Report of the Inquiry into the Export of Defence Equipment and Dual-Use Goods to Iraq and Related Prosecutions," laid before The House of Commons on 15 February 1996, Volume One, Section D, Arms and Defence-Related Exports to Iraq, Chapter 2 "Applications of The Guidelines in the period December 1984 to August 1988."

March 1985
Iraq attacks Iranians in the area of Hawizah Marsh with mustard and Tabun.
--"Anthony Cordesman, "Iraq's Search for Weapons of Mass Destruction", The Military Balance in the Middle East, Part XIV, CSIS, 6 Sept 1999, pp. 50-60.

Late 1985
Iraq has the capability to indigenously manufacture nerve agents.
--Victor A. Utgoff, The Challenge of Chemical Weapons: An American Perspective, (New York: St. Matin's Press, 1991), p. 83.

Mid-1980s
East German specialists (from the now-disbanded Volksarmee) install a large chemical warfare training center in Iraq. The facility was established to train the Iraqi army in effective delivery of CW agents.
--Adel Darwish and Gregory Alexander, Unholy Babylon: The Secret History of Saddam's War, (London: Victor Gollancz Ltd., 1991), p. 111.

1986
The U.N. conducts a second investigation, which validates the conclusion from the first investigation that Iraq used Tabun.
--Anthony Cordesman, "Creating Weapons of Mass Destruction, Armed Forces Journal International 126 (February 1989), p.56.

February 1986
Iraq attacks Iranian forces in the area of the al-Faw peninsula with mustard and Tabun
--"Anthony Cordesman, "Iraq's Search for Weapons of Mass Destruction", The Military Balance in the Middle East, Part XIV, CSIS, 6 Sept, 1999, pp. 50-60.

February 1986
According to a U.S. intelligence report released in February 1998, Iraq attacks Iranian forces using mustard and the nerve agent Tabun, allegedly resulting in 8,000 to 10,000 fatalities.
--Bill Gertz, "'White Paper' Details Iraq's Hidden Biological Weapons," Washington Times, 18 February 1998, p.A10.

February and March 1986
The U.N. sends four chemical warfare experts to Iraq to investigate continuing allegations of chemical weapons use.
--UNSCOM Seventh Report Under Resolution 715, S/1995/284n, 10 April 1995 found at the Federation of American Scientists, <http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/iraq/cw/program.html>.

March 1986
U.N. Secretary General Javier Perez de Cuellar formally accuses Iraq of using chemical weapons against Iran, citing the report of the U.N. experts.
--UNSCOM Seventh Report Under Resolution 715, S/1995/284n, 10 April 1995 found at the Federation of American Scientists, <http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/iraq/cw/program.html>.

3 August 1986
General Dayya Abd-al-Wahab 'Izzat, commander of the Iraqi Erbil Division, issues an order to take a semi-annual inventory of all "biological and chemical materials."
--The document was obtained by Human Rights Watch from the Kurdistan Democratic Party. Human Rights Watch in a letter to Rolf Ekéus, Chairman of UNSCOM, 29 December 1992.

December 1986
Iraq attacks Iranians with sulfur mustard in the area of Umm ar Rasas.
--"Anthony Cordesman, "Iraq's Search for Weapons of Mass Destruction", The Military Balance in the Middle East, Part XIV (CSIS, 6 Sept, 1999), pp. 50-60.

1986
The Dutch firm Melchemie is convicted by the Dutch government of export violations for attempting to export to Iraq phosphorous oxychloride, a precursor of the nerve agent Tabun.
--Adel Darwish and Gregory Alexander, Unholy Babylon: The Secret History of Saddam's War, (London: Victor Gollancz Ltd., 1991), p.106; Anthony Cordesman, "Creating Weapons of Mass Destruction," Armed Forces Journal International 126 (February 1989), p. 56.

1986
The administration of the Muthanna State Establishment is transferred from the Chemical Corps, which ran it since 1978, to the Special Office for Technical Industry (SOTI), the technical arm of the Special Security Organization (SSO), under Hussayn Kamil.
--Scott Ritter, Endgame: Solving the Iraq Problem – Once and for All, (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1999), pp.83, 86.

1987-1988
VX becomes the focus of Iraqi CW agent research late in 1987. 250 tons of phosphorus pentasulphide and 200 tons of di-isopropylamine are imported, which are precursors for production of VX. Iraq claims that by September 1988, it had abandoned further attempts to develop VX.
--S/1995/284n- UNSCOM Seventh report under resolution 715, 4 October, 1995.

1987
The first Iraqi chemical attacks against civilian populations takes place. Attacks launched by Iraqi aircraft against 20 small villages in the Balasan Valley near Arbil.
--Khidhir Hamza with Jeff Stein, Saddam's Bombmaker: The Terrifying Inside Story of the Iraqi Nuclear and Biological Weapons Agenda, (New York: Scribner, 2000), p. 200.

April 1987
British officials refused a request to export hydrogen fluoride to the "Rayon State Establishment" for what was stated to be "[research and development] for a pilot scale production of a chemical product .... for the Iraqi state electricity organization." Hydrogen fluoride is a chemical used in the production of Sarin.
--Appendices to the Report of the Inquiry into the Export of Defence Equipment and Dual-Use Goods to Iraq and Related Prosecutions laid before The House of Commons on 15 February 1996,Volume One, Section D, "Arms and Defence-Related Exports to Iraq," Chapter 2 Applications of The Guidelines in the period December 1984 to August 1988, D2.246.

March 1987- April 1988
Alcolac International Inc., a U.S. company, violates U.S. export law by selling thiodiglycol, a major ingredient in mustard, to Iraq. Alcolac pleads guilty to this violation in 1989.
--Tom Toolen, "N.J. Man Accused of Poison Gas Role; Crackdown on Illegal Exports," Los Angeles Times News Service, 31 January 1989.

29 June 1987
Iran asserts that Iraqi warplanes dropped mustard agent on four residential areas of Sardasht, a predominantly Kurdish region of northwestern Iran. There are 10 civilian deaths and approximately 650 injuries.
--"Iranians Say Iraqis Killed 10 in Poison Gas Raid on Town," New York Times, 29 June 1987, p. 6.

3 August 1987
The United States expands its chemical exports embargo against Iraq in response to the continued procurement efforts by Iraq and its neighbors. The eight additional chemicals in this new extension are: n- diisoprpylaminoethane-2-thiol, n- diisopropylaminoethyl-2-chloride, dimethyl phosphate (DMP), 3-hydroxy-1-methylpiperdine, phosphorus trichloride, 3-quinuclidinol, thionyl chloride, trimethyl phosphate (TMP). The four chemicals already embargoed and now subject to worldwide export licensing are: dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP), methylphosphonyl dichloride (DC), methylphosphonyl diflouride (DF), phosphorous oxychloride.
--"U.S. Expands Ban on Chemical Sales," The Journal of Commerce, 4 August, 1987, p.6A.

1987
Iraqi aircraft attack 20 small villages with chemical weapons including mustard, Tabun and nerve agents.
[Note: It is not clear from the source whether the villages were located in Iran, the Kurdish strongholds in Iraq, or both]
--"Chemical Weapons Programs- Iraq special Weapons Facilities," Federation of American Scientists' website, <www.fas.org/nuke/guide/iraq/cw/program.htm>

Late 1987
According to General Wafiq al-Sammarai, former head of Iraqi Military Intelligence, Iraqi engineers aided by German scientists succeeded in producing VX in late 1987.
--Patrick Cockburn, "Iraq Used Deadly Gas on Iranians," Independent, 3 July 1998, Patrick Cockburn, "How Saddam Kept Deadly Gas Secret," Independent, 3 July 1998, "Iraq Reportedly Used VX Gas in Iran-Iraq War," CNN, 3 July 1998.

Early 1988
Iraq plans to build a major petrochemical complex at Musayyib that would be capable of hypothetically producing 420,000 tons per year of ethylene and 67,000 tons of ethylene oxide as well as other chemicals which are needed in the production of mustard agent. Techcorp is the government-owned company responsible for construction. Total estimated cost is about $2.5 billion, mostly financed by foreign loans.
--Middle East Economic Digest, February 17 1989, p. 17, Middle East Economic Digest, November 18, 1988, p. 17.

16-18 March 1988
As part of an ongoing military campaign, Iraqi forces use chemical weapons in an attack on Halabja, a Kurdish town of 45,000 in northern Iraq. The attack involves multiple chemical agents including mustard and the nerve agents Sarin, Tabun, and VX. Some sources also report cyanide use, although according to a Pentagon study of questionable reliability Iran is the party who used cyanide in the attack. It is estimated that approximately 5,000 people died in the attack.
--Gordon M. Burck and Charles C. Flowerree, International Handbook on Chemical Weapons Proliferation, p. 33, UNSCOM Seventh Report Under Resolution 715, S/1995/284n, 10 April 1995 found at the Federation of American Scientists, <http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/iraq/cw/program.html>, Christine Gosden, "Why I Went, What I Saw," Washington Post, 11 March 1998, p. A19, Christine Gosden, "Kurdish Hell of Cancer and Despair," Sydney Morning Herald, 14 March 1998, Patrick E. Tyler, "Both Iraq and Iran Gassed Kurds in War, U.S. Analysis Finds," Washington Post, 3 May 1990, p. A3.

April 1988
Iraq uses 100 tons of Sarin on Iranian forces occupying parts of the Al-Faw peninsula. In the following months Iraq uses Sarin and other nerve agents against Iranian positions.
--Iraq's Weapons of Mass Destruction: The Assessment of the British Government. 2002, p. 15.

April 1988
Iraq flies 15 Iraqi soldiers to England, Australia and West Germany for treatment of wounds it says they suffered from Iranian chemical weapons during the fighting in Halabja. Iraq has said 88 of its soldiers were wounded in the Iranian attack.
--"Fifteen Iraqi soldiers Flown to London, Vienna for Treatment," The Associated Press, 11 April 1988.

8-11 April 1988
The U.N. team visits Iraq to investigate CW allegations at Halabja made by both Iraq and Iran. The team concludes that victims have been exposed to sulfur mustard.
--Gordon M. Burck and Charles C. Flowerree, International Handbook on Chemical Weapons Proliferation, (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1991), p. 110.

17-18 April 1988
VX is allegedly used against Iranian forces in the al-Faw Peninsula. The delivery systems are long-range artillery shells and aircraft. [This information is provided in 1998 by General Wafiq al-Sammarai a former head of Military Intelligence.]
--"Iraq Reportedly Used VX Gas in Iran-Iraq War," Reuters, 3 July 1998; Patrick Cockburn, "Iraq Used Deadly Gas on Iranians," Independent, 3 July 1998; "Iraq Reportedly Used VX Gas in Iran-Iraq War," CNN, 3 July 1998, <www.cnn.com>.

3 May 1988
The village of Gop Tapa is bombed with chemical weapons by six Iraqi planes. [Note: The original source is the Iraqi Patriotic Union of Kurdistan so distortion is possible. The attack does coincide with the 1988 Anfal campaign in this area.] This report was filed in 2000 upon the discovery of mass graves around the village.
"Mass Grave of Chemical-Attack Victims Found in Kurdish Region," Iraqi Patriotic Union of Kurdistan satellite TV, 11 November 2000, appears in BBC Worldwide Monitoring (British Broadcasting Corporation, 13 November 2000)

June 1988
Iraq employs both aircraft and artillery shells to deliver chemical warfare agents, including mustard, cyanide and nerve agents against Iranian forces deployed on Majnoon Island.
--Adel Darwish and Gregory Alexander, Unholy Babylon: The Secret History of Saddam's War, (London: Victor Gollancz Ltd., 1991), p. 112, Timothy V. McCarthy and Jonathan B. Tucker, "Saddam's Toxic Arsenal" Chemical and Biological Weapons in the Gulf Wars," in Peter R. Lavoy, Scott D. Sagan and James J. Wirtz (Ed.), Planning the Unthinkable: How New Powers Will Use Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Weapons, (Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press, 2000), p. 65.

9-12 July 1988
An U.N. team visits Iraq to investigate Iraqi allegations of chemical weapons use by Iran.
--Gordon M. Burck and Charles C. Flowerree, International Handbook on Chemical Weapons Proliferation, (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1991), p.113.

20 July 1988
The U.N. releases a report describing their investigation. The team concludes that the Iraqis had used both sulfur mustard and a nerve agent against Iran in June.
--Gordon M. Burck and Charles C. Flowerree, International Handbook on Chemical Weapons Proliferation, (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1991), pp. 112-113.

12-14 August 1988
A U.N. team visits Iran to investigate CW allegations. The team concludes that Iraq bombed the Sheikh Othman district in Oshnabiyah with mustard agent.
--Gordon M. Burck and Charles C. Flowerree, International Handbook on Chemical Weapons Proliferation, (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1991), p. 114.

Aug. 20, 1988:
Cease-fire in Iran-Iraq war comes into effect, to be monitored by the U.N. Iran-Iraq Military Observer Group (UNIIMOG).

25 August 1988
According to a staff report issued by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in September 1988, Iraq uses chemical weapons against Kurdish guerillas and civilians in Kurdish towns and villages near the Turkish border. A report by Physicians for Human Rights from February 1989 also concludes that Iraq used lethal agents against Kurds in northern Iraq on this day.
--"Iraq Uses Gas Against Kurds, Senate Staff Report Charges," New York Times, 22 September 1988, p. 21, Melissa Healy, "Senate Probers See 'Genocide' In Iraq Gas Use," Los Angeles Times, 22 September 1988, p.1, Winds of Death: Iraq's Use of Poison Gas Against Its Kurdish Population, Report of a Medical Mission to Turkish Kurdistan by Physicians for Human Rights, February 1989.

September 1988
According to Iraq's 1995 disclosure, it abandons its VX program.

8 September 1988
The U.S. State Department says that based on its information, it is convinced that Iraq used "poison gas" against Kurdish guerillas and condemns the action as "abhorrent and unjustifiable."
--Clyde Haberman, "Turkey Reports Kurdish Refugees Showed No Signs of Iraqi Gassing," New York Times, 10 September 1988, p.4, Norman Kempster, "U.S. Says Iraqi Use of Poison Gas on Kurds Is 'Abhorrent'," Los Angeles Times, 9 September 1988, p.9, Julie Johnson, "U.S. Asserts Iraq Used Poison Gas Against the Kurds," New York Times, 9 September 1988, p. 1.

9 September 1988
The Turkish government says that its investigation produced no evidence that Iraq used chemical weapons against the Kurds.
--Clyde Haberman, "Turkey Reports Kurdish Refugees Showed No Signs of Iraqi Gassing," New York Times, 10 September 1988, p.4.

15 September 1988
U.S. government officials say that the U.S. had intercepted communications by the Iraqi Air Force indicating that Iraq had used poisonous agents against Kurdish guerillas.
--Robert Pear, "U.S. Says It Monitored Iraqi Messages on Gas," New York Times, 15 September 1988, p.12.

17 September 1988
A letter issued by the presidential council, signed by Hussayn Kamil, states, "The principal of deterrence is the best means for defense against the Zionist entity and we suggest in this respect the following: to continue to develop the chemical weapons with an attempt to acquire more lethal types of munitions in large quantities..."
--Presidential Council letter No. A/4/99/32573, 17 September 1988, in Scott Ritter, Endgame: Solving the Iraq Problem – Once and for All, (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1999), p. 92.

December 1988
A British laboratory finds traces of 1-4-Dithiane in soil samples taken from Iraqi Kurdistan, which supports allegations that Iraq used chemical weapons, specifically sulfur mustard, against its Kurdish population.
--"Poison Gas Traces Are Found in Iraq," New York Times, 4 December 1988, p. 25.

1989
The Research and Development Center, known as Saad 16 in Mosul, is completed. It is equipped with facilities for the development of missiles and chemical weapons.
--Adel Darwish and Gregory Alexander, Unholy Babylon: The Secret History of Saddam's War, (London: Victor Gollancz Ltd., 1991), p. 85.

November 1989
Iraq conducts weaponization tests with 122 mm artillery rockets.
--Barbara Starr, "Iraq Reveals a Startling Range of Toxin Agents," Jane's Defense Weekly, Vol. 24, No. 19, 11 November 1995, p. 4.