Chemical Weapons: A Controversial Topic in The World Today

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Chemical weapons have been extremely controversial in our world. A chemical weapon is, “A toxic chemical contained in a delivery system, such as a bomb or shell,” its essential purpose is to conflict harm onto people through harmful gases. A chemical weapon, as of the definition from the North Atlantic Treaty of Organization’s definition is, “A chemical substance which is intended for use in military operations to kill, seriously injure, or incapacitate people because of its physiological effects.” Clearly, these two definitions of chemical weapons are similar but are still considered to be inhumane. Chemical weapons are cheap and are easy to produce, even in many countries that are developing. These types of weapons are created in laboratories, which contain different gases and elements. Some gases used to create chemical weapons are chloride gas, mustard gas and phosgene gas. Should chemical weapons be permitted during years to come; after all the damage they have left in various places around the world, are they really necessary? These weapons have been used during World War I in trench warfare. The gases were releases from canisters and spread by the wind. This caused thousands of death and over a million casualties during the war. In 1935, Italy began its conquest of Ethiopia using mustard gas that was distributed through aircrafts. In 1936, Japan invaded China using mustard gas, phosgene, and hydrogen cyanide. In 1963-4, Egypt used phosgene and mustard gas aerial bombs against Yemen royalists during the Yemen civil war. In 1980-8, Iraq used mustard gas and nerve agents against Iran and Iraqi Kurds. Somewhat recent in 1994-5 the Japanese Aum Shinrikyo cult used sarin in multiple terrorist attacks at Matsumoto (June 1994) a... ... middle of paper ... ...ms Trade and Its Impact on Health . The International Arms Trade and Its Impact on Health. Retrieved May 5, 2014, from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2539084/?page=2 7. The Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. (n.d.). About.com 20th Century History. Retrieved May 5, 2014, from http://history1900s.about.com/od/worldwarii/a/hiroshima.htm 8. Article Not Found. (n.d.). Cambridge Journals. Retrieved May 7, 2014, from http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract;jsessionid=BB950C485D425842754EDDC9277ECBDF.journals?fromPage=online&aid=3218284 9. Article Not Found. (n.d.). Cambridge Journals. Retrieved May 7, 2014, from http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract;jsessionid=BB950C485D425842754EDDC9277ECBDF.journals?fromPage=online&aid=3218284 10. CODOH. (n.d.). 1944) (2008). Retrieved May 7, 2014, from http://codoh.com/library/document/976/

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