This annotated chronology is based on the data sources that follow each entry. Public sources often provide conflicting information on classified military programs. In some cases we are unable to resolve these discrepancies, in others we have deliberately refrained from doing so to highlight the potential influence of false or misleading information as it appeared over time. In many cases, we are unable to independently verify claims. Hence in reviewing this chronology, readers should take into account the credibility of the sources employed here.

Inclusion in this chronology does not necessarily indicate that a particular development is of direct or indirect proliferation significance. Some entries provide international or domestic context for technological development and national policymaking. Moreover, some entries may refer to developments with positive consequences for nonproliferation.

5 November 1929
Iran accedes to the Geneva Protocol for the "Prohibition of the Use in War of Asphyxiating, Poisonous or Other Gases, and of Bacteriological Methods of Warfare." Significantly, Iran does not place any reservations on its participation in and adherence to the protocol (i.e., right of in-kind retaliation, etc.). [Note: This becomes an important factor during Iran's war with Iraq (1980-1988), in which Iran resorts to CW acquisition, development, and use in retaliation for Iraq's chemical attacks.]
—For date confirmation, see SIPRI, "High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Protocol," <http://projects.sipri.se/cbw/docs/cbw-hist-geneva-parties.html>.

Between 1929 and 1955
There is no information available concerning Iranian CW activities during this period.

Between 1955 and 1960
Eleven Iranian officials attend US Army chemical and biological weapons (CBW) training courses.
—Congressional Record (Annual Edition), 23 December 1969, pp. 41180-83; cited in Gordon M. Burck and Charles C. Flowerree, International Handbook on Chemical Weapons Proliferation (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1991), p. 252.

Between 1960 and 1980
There is no information available concerning Iranian CW activities.

September 1980
According to Defense and Foreign Affairs, Iran uses Hong Kong as a conduit for unspecified strategic materials to Iran imported mainly from the United States. Over the next six years, the source documents that the clandestine traffic includes aircraft parts and an attempted sale to Iran of protective masks.
—Robert Karniol, "Iran's Hong Kong Connection," Defense & Foreign Affairs, May 1986, p. 42.

1 October 1980
An Iraqi fighter jet drops three bombs on the Iran Chemical Development Co. (ICDC), still under construction in Bandar Khomeini, southern Iran. The bombs damaged a chemical tank yard, Aroma plant area, and Olef plant area of the Japan-Iran joint petrochemical complex. All 800 employees were safely evacuated to a remote site.
—"Japan-Iran Petrochemical Complex Site Bombed Again," Jiji Press Ticker Service, 1 October 1980.

16 November 1980
Iran publishes its first allegation of an Iraqi CW attack. [Note: As shown directly below, there are varying reports as to when exactly Iraq began using CW against Iranian troops in the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988).]
—"Timeline for Iraq's Use of Chemical Weapons," in Gordon M. Burck and Charles C. Flowerree, International Handbook on Chemical Weapons Proliferation (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1991), p. 32.

16 November 1980
The Iranian Chief of Staff Office alleges that the Iraqis used "chemical weapons that caused blisters" and "spread germs" during a battle in the Southwestern city of Susangerd that left many civilian and military casualties. While the chemical substance was never specified, journalists speculated about the use of napalm.
—"Iran Claims Biggest Victory of War," Associated Press, 18 November 1980; "Iran Foreign Ministry Statement on Iraq's "Germ" Warfare," BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 19 November 1980; "Iran Seeks Outside Inquiry on Chemical-arms Claims," Christian Science Monitor, 19 November 1980; "Iran Statement on Iraq's 'Inhuman' Weapons," BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 19 November 1980; "Iraqi Troops Storm Susangerd," Associated Press, 16 November 1980; Alex Efty, "International News," Associated Press, 17 November 1980; Alex Efty, "Iran Claims Iraqis Retreat from Susangerd," Associated Press, 17 November 1980; Loren Jenkins, "Iraqis Press Major Battle in Gulf War; Iraqis Press Drive Against Susangerd in Major Campaign; Iran Says Enemy Launches Big Push Against Susangerd," Washington Post, 17 November 1980; Farouk Nassar, "Iranian Warplanes Hit Kuwaiti Outpost," Associated Press, 16 November 1980.

16 November 1980
A Western-based analyst believes charges made by Iran about Iraqi use of chemical weapons are "almost certainly without foundation." He believes the charges were part propaganda and part fear that Iraq would soon use chemical weapons. He states that unlike Iraq, which followed USSR military doctrine emphasizing the role of chemical weapons, Iran did not have a chemical weapons doctrine. At this time, Iran's "forces seldom carried protective equipment and received little, if any formal training in CW countermeasures."
—W. Andrew Terrill Jr., "Chemical Weapons in the Gulf War," Strategic Review, Spring 1986, p. 53.

9 January 1981
SIPRI reports in 1985 that on this day Iraq began using CW against Iranian troops. Tehran Radio claimed that "Iraqis used napalm and "chemical warfare bombs" in their attacks on Ahvaz, Southwestern Iran.
—World Armaments and Disarmament: SIPRI Yearbook 1985 (London: Taylor and Francis, 1985); Nicolas Tatro, "Iran Vows to Fight On Whatever the Cost," Associated Press, 10 January 1980.
[Note: The SIPRI reports cites the following news report: Pars News Agency; quoted in Guardian (London), 10 January 1981.]

9 January 1981
SIPRI reported that on this day Iraq began using CW against Iranian troops.
—World Armaments and Disarmament: SIPRI Yearbook 1985 (London: Taylor and Francis, 1985).
[Note: The SIPRI reports cites the following news report: Pars News Agency; quoted in Guardian (London), 10 January 1981.]

13 January 1981
According to the official Iranian tabulation of its war with Iraq, published in 1988, this is the day that Iraq first used CW against Iranian troops at Halaleh and Neykhazar.
—Letter Dated 11 April 1988 from the Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran Addressed to the President of the Conference on Disarmament, Conference on Disarmament Document CD/87, 12 April 1988.

21 July 1981
Iraqi sources deny Iranian claims of chemical weapon use at this stage of the Iran/Iraq conflict, citing Iranian motives to generate international sympathy for their cause.
—"Iraqi Denial of Using Chemical Weapons," BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 23 July 1981.

13 August 1981
Iran reports an Iraqi chemical weapons attack in an unnamed mountain pass along the Northern Iran/Iraq border. Iraq dismisses the claims as part of Iran's ongoing "campaign of lies."
—"Allegations of Chemical Warfare Practiced by Iraq," BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 14 August 1981.

21 June 1982
Raids on 11 Mojahedin-e Khalq (MKO) safehouses in Tehran by Iranian security forces yielded the seizure of several arms, documents and cyanide tablets.
—"Iran: In Brief; Clashes with Mojahedin-e Khalq," BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 23 June 1982.

19 June 1982
Iran signs a trade protocol with Bulgaria, authorizing the sale of chemical fertilizers and other agricultural products to Iran in exchange for oil and industrial products. Arrangements were also made for Bulgaria to aid in the production of vaccines and other various veterinary drugs.
—"In Brief; Bulgarian-Iranian Agreements," BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 24 June 1982; "Iran: Agreement on Trade," BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 1 July 1982.

July 1982
Iranian troops are attacked by Iraq with riot control agents (CS or other tear gas).
—Andrew Rathmell, "Iran's Weapons of Mass Destruction," Jane's Intelligence Review – Special Report No. 6, June 1995, p. 15.

July 1982
A US source reports Iraqis use of riot control agents (CS or other tear gas) on unmasked Iranian troops, causing panic and retreat due to a lack of detection equipment. Commentary states that "US officials are confident that the Iraqis do not possess any deadly chemical weapons." According to a Western analyst, this is the first use of chemical weapons in the Iran-Iraq War.
—Eric Gelman, "Iraq's Scare Tactic," Newsweek, 2 August 1982, p. 11; Andrew Rathmell, "Iran's Weapons of Mass Destruction," Jane's Intelligence Review – Special Report No. 6, June 1995, p. 15; W. Andrew Terrill Jr., "Chemical Weapons in the Gulf War," Strategic Review, Spring 1986, p. 53.

25 October 1982
Saleh Ali Fatah, an Iraqi diplomat stationed in Denmark, asserts in a television interview that Iraq has a "deadly sophisticated weapon prepared for use against Iran that could kill 60,000, 70,000 and even 100,000 people at one time." The diplomat reportedly denied that it was nuclear or chemical or anything else illegal under international treaties. Supposedly he also denied that it was a biological weapon off camera.
—"Says New Weapon Could Kill 100,000 Iranians," Associated Press, 26 October 1982.

28 October 1982
A $10 million contract with the Bulgarian Termoelektro electrical engineering company ensures Iran's acquisition of new "devices for the chemical treatment of water at a thermal power station near Tabriz," with plans to commence construction in the Spring of 1983. If this were a legitimate enterprise for civilian uses, the chemical treatment here probably would have involved the use of chlorine.
—"Iran: Termoelektro to Export Water Treatment Apparatus," BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 28 October 1982.

December 1982
Western analysis states that "credible accounts of lethal CW use by Iraq began to emerge in December" 1982. [Note: It is not clear which attacks or accounts of the attacks Terrill is referring to. Terrill cites a 26 January 1984 Los Angeles Times article.]
—W. Andrew Terrill Jr., "Chemical Weapons in the Gulf War," Strategic Review, Spring 1986, p. 53.

1983
Iran begins its offensive chemical warfare program and a crash effort to acquire chemical defense gear, in response to Iraqi CW use against Iranian forces. The IRGC (Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps), with support from the Iranian Ministry of Defense, is placed in charge of the program.
—US Department of Defense, Proliferation: Threat and Response, April 1996, <http://www.defenselink.mil>; Gregory F. Giles, "The Islamic Republic of Iran and Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Weapons," in Peter R. Lavoy, Scott D. Sagan, and James J. Wirtz, eds., Planning The Unthinkable: How New Powers Will Use Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Weapons (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2000), p. 82; Anthony H. Cordesman and Ahmed S. Hashim, Iran: Dilemmas of Dual Containment (Westview Press, 1997), p. 291.

1983-1984
A Western analyst reports that, "Iran only seems to have begun a crash effort to create a domestic chemical weapons production capability in 1983-1984. It sought aid from European firms like Lurgi to product [sic] large 'pesticide' plants and began to try to obtain the needed feedstock from a wide range of sources, relying heavily on its Embassy in Bonn manage the necessary deals." While Lurgi did not provide the pesticide plant Iran sought, Iran did obtain substantial support from other European firms and feedstocks from a wide range of Western sources. [Note: Cordesman does not offer any citations or other evidence to substantiate his claims. His one footnote for all of this information pertains to a deal in 1987 to ship thiodiglycol to Iran from the Baltimore-based company Alcolac. More information on that case is given below.]
—Anthony H. Cordesman, Weapons of Mass Destruction in the Middle East (London: Brassey's, 1991), p. 83.

9 August 1983
More than 50 Iranian soldiers are severely wounded by Iraqi chemical bombs dropped in northwestern Iran. The victims complain of painful burning and irritation in the eyes and on the body. (These symptoms are consistent with exposure to mustard agent.) The bombs were dropped six kilometers west of the Piranshahr-Ravanduz road in Kordestan province. W. Andrew Terrill Jr. states that these attacks took place near Piranshahr.
—"IRNA Reports Iraqi Regime Using Chemical Weapons to Stop Val-Fajr IV," IRNA, 22 October 1983; FBIS Document 58805; "The Iran-Iraq War: In Brief; Iraq's Alleged Use of Chemical Weapons," IRNA in English, 10 November 1983, reported in British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 12 November 1983, Part 4, p. A1; W. Andrew Terrill Jr., "Chemical Weapons in the Gulf War," Strategic Review, Spring 1986, p. 53.

22 October 1983
Iraqi forces fire "at least 20 chemical artillery shells" in order to stop advancing Iranian troops in the Sarbish and Hani Baraneh regions, north of the Iraqi town of Panjvin.
—"IRNA Reports Iraqi Regime Using Chemical Weapons to Stop Val-Fajr IV," IRNA, 22 October 1983; FBIS Document 58805.

25 October 1983
The Iranian agency accuses Iraq of dropping "chemical bombs" on a village near Baneh, killing 13 and wounding 40.
—"The Iran-Iraq War," British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 27 October 1983, Part 4, p. A.

25 October 1983
The Armed Forces Joint Staff issues Communiqué No. 1513 reporting Iraqi use of "chemical bombs" in the area around Baneh, killing 13 Iranians and wounding 48.
— "Iranian Military Communiqués," Tehran Home Service, 25 October 1983, reported in British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 28 October 1983, part 4, p. A1.

28 October 1983
First Lieutenant Abbas Kangarani and another conscripted combatant named Esma'il Mohammadian, both under treatment at a Tehran hospital for skin injuries caused by toxic bombs and other chemical explosives, claim they witnessed Iraqi aircraft dropping chemical bombs in the Khavazi-II battlefront several days ago. Lt. Kangarani says that seconds after seeing the Iraqi aircraft drop the bomb an entire area was darkened by a mist and he immediately developed nausea and vertigo surface scars on the exposed parts of his body. Mohammadian says that doctors have told him that he is suffering from the effects of phosphorous bombs. The two say that the chemical bombs polluted a vast area in the Wa al-Fajr 4 theater. [Note: The rapid onset of symptoms caused by the reported injurious substances are consistent with the use of white phosphorous, and perhaps other toxic off gases from conventional explosives.]
—"Iran: In Brief; Eyewitness Accounts of Iraqi Chemical Warfare," IRNA in English, 28 October 1983, reported in British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 1 November 1983, Part 4, p. A1.

26 October 1983
More than 100 people are injured as Iraqi planes drop chemical bombs on the villages of Bayan-Darreh and Bayanjan near the Kurdish inhabited town of Baneh.
—"Iran: In Brief; Civilian War Casualties," IRNA in English, 16 November 1983, reported in British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 18 November 1983, Part 4, p. A1.

3 November 1983
Iran formally submits its first allegation of Iraqi CW use to the United Nations and requests that the Secretary-General commence an investigation.
—"Iranian Request for UN Action on Iraqi CW Use," US Department of State Daily Report, 9 November 1983, Record Number 58816.

7 November 1983
Iraqi war planes drop chemical bombs on the Sheikh-Lar region in the northwestern battlefront at 1600 hours. Twenty wounded Islamic combatants suffering from burn and eye irritation are transferred to hospitals in Maragheh, East Azarbayjan Province.
—"The Iran-Iraq War: In Brief; Iraq's Alleged Use of Chemical Weapons," IRNA in English, 10 November 1983, reported in British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 12 November 1983, Part 4, p. A1.

7 November 1983
A Western analyst states that Iraqi chemical attacks in late October and early November took place at Panjivin.
—W. Andrew Terrill Jr., "Chemical Weapons in the Gulf War," Strategic Review, Spring 1986, p. 53.

24 November 1983
The International Medical Seminar in Tehran issues a final statement recommending that Iran make required arrangements for the establishment of a permanent commission to survey the damages caused by chemical and biological bombardment of Iranian cities and military zones in close cooperation with international institutes concerned. It also called on the United Nations and the International Red Cross organization to dispatch fact-finding committees to Iran in order to investigate the results of Iraqi chemical attacks and make the world know about their findings.
—"Iraqi Use of Chemical Weapons Condemned," IRNA in English, 25 November 1983, reported in British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 28 November 1983, Part 4, p. A1.

Early December 1983
According to Kurdish sources, Khomeyni's regime repeatedly uses napalm bombs and chemical weapons to murder villagers in Kordestan during recent clashes.
—"Iran: In Brief; Kurds liberate Sanandaj For A Day," Radio Iran, 5 December 1983, reported in British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 8 December 1983, Part 4, p. A1.

10 December 1983
Ali Akbar Velayati, Iran's Minister of Foreign Affairs, criticizes a resolution passed by the political committee of the Islamic Conference on the Iran-Iraq War: "The resolution passed by the political committee...attempts to cover up the crimes committed by this [Iraqi] regime including attacks on residential areas, the killing of innocent civilians, the use of chemical bombs....In our view, it is worthless and does not affect our decision to continue our just and legitimate fight on the battlefront against the aggressor."
—"Iranian Response to Conference Resolution on Iran-Iraq War," Tehran Home Service, 10 December 1983, reported in British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 12 December 1983, Part 3, p. A.

	Updated October 2003