Chemical Weapons Use In Warfare And Terrorism
In recent years, through various terrorist attacks, chemical and biological weapons have become a threat to the general public.Chemical weapons are weapons that contain chemical agents. These agents are poisonous chemical compounds that can injure or kill individuals through contact, inhalation or ingestion. The chemical agent can be in the form of liquids or gasses but can vary in properties. The agents are generally stable whilst being stored but can be very reactive when released. Chemical weapons have been used throughout history in warfare dating back to ancient and medieval times where weapons and arrows dipped in poison where used to kill their opponent more effectively. During the 1800s it was possible to produce large amounts of chemical agents, which led to an international peace conference held in The Hague1 in 1899 to prohibit the use of chemical agents on weapons and in projectiles. Mass use of chemical agents was first seen in World War I where 100,000 tonnes of toxic chemical was used resulting in 90,000 deaths and over a million casualties1.Currently there are many different types of agents used in chemical weapons, which can be grouped together in different categories;
The Japanese manufacture large amounts of mustard and other chemical agents and tested these chemicals on prisoners, who were tied up and exposed to the chemicals (some were even forced to drink them). Mustard has also been used in many civil wars in Africa and Egypt during the 1930s. Terrorists have used chemical weapons in the past and most probably use them again, unless something is done about countries producing these agents and selling them to such terrorist groups. Symptoms of sarin can included a runny nose and drooling, vomiting, nausea, dimmed vision and headache. In recent history terrorist have become aware of the use of chemical and biological weapons. This attack on the general public cause 5500 people to seek medical attention and caused 12 casualties. Sarin (C4H10FO2P, methylphosphonofluoridic acid, (1-methylethyl) ester) is a nerve agent. To protect against mustard gas a nuclear biological suit and a gas mask has to be worn and must be washed down with water after contamination. Chlorine, (Cl2) is a choking agent. In its purest form mustard is colourless and odourless but it is most commonly used in a yellow-brownish form and it had a slight mustard or garlic odour. This build up results in not enough oxygen to be transferred through the body and the victim drowns. A gas mask must be worn for protection against chlorine gas. Chlorine can irritate the eyes and skin. Chemical weapons may have become appealing to terrorist because of their effectiveness against their target and that they are almost impossible to detect whilst being transported. Using a basic solution as a catalyst hydrolysis is very rapid.
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