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Why did Iraq use chemical weapons against Iranian forces in the Iran-Iraq War?

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American soldiers in World War I uniforms, some wearing gas masks, advance with rifles during a simulated gas attack exercise on a rocky battlefield. — chemical weapon American soldiers participating in a simulated gas attack exercise, World War I.

During the Iran-Iraq War (1980–88), Iraq employed chemical weapons primarily as a strategic tool to counter the numerical superiority of Iranian forces.1

Following the initial stages of the conflict, the war devolved into a stalemate characterized by static, entrenched fronts. Iran frequently launched large-scale infantry assaults, including human-wave attacks, which placed significant pressure on Iraqi defenses. Iraq utilized chemical agents—including nerve agents like sarin and tabun, as well as blister agents like sulfur mustard—to repel these offensives and inflict heavy casualties on Iranian troops.21

Ultimately, these weapons enabled Iraq to avoid military defeat against the more numerous Iranian forces, though they did not secure a decisive victory for the regime of Saddam Hussein. The use of such indiscriminate and horrific weaponry is a grave violation of international humanitarian principles, which strictly prohibit the use of chemical arms due to their catastrophic impact on human life and the environment.13