Trove of Documents Reveals Alleged Chemical Weapons Stockpile in Sudan

Sudan’s authoritarian government built a secret stockpile of chemical weapons that senior military officials sought to conceal after chlorine bombs were used against rebel forces, according to internal videos, documents, text messages and other materials reviewed by The Washington Post. The materials indicate that Sudan’s chemical weapons effort involved diverting shipments of chlorine meant to provide safe drinking water, hiding warhead production sites on military bases, testing bombs in remote desert locations and drawing up lists of targets where toxic gas could penetrate enemy defenses. … Any stockpiling and use of chemical weapons would violate long-standing international bans aimed at eradicating a notoriously inhumane form of warfare, and put Sudan in the company of Syria and Iraq as states that have been condemned in recent decades for deploying chemical agents against their own people. … The files include documents allegedly prepared by Sudanese military officials that refer to “dual-effect” munitions filled with “choking gas,” videos that show weapons tests producing plumes of green-yellow vapor, and messages between Sudanese military officials indicating that the country’s security forces had stockpiled as many as 290 chemical munitions. … The files also indicate that SAF officers were focused on covering their tracks. The same document includes Arabic text saying that “the main purpose of the new design is to conceal any evidence of the use of chemicals and to release the gas from the tank directly in a perfect way,” according to a Washington Post translation. (The Washington Post)