Sudan Military Built 6-Month Chlorine Weapons Program, Secret Dossier Alleges
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Sep 5
Sudan Military Built 6-Month Chlorine Weapons Program, Secret Dossier Alleges
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Sep 5
Summary
A Middle Eastern intelligence dossier says Sudan’s military developed and produced chlorine-based munitions over six months in 2024 for use against the Rapid Support Forces.
Photographs, videos, documents and intercepted communications described a covert military unit, bomb blueprints and an apparent cleanup effort after U.S. discovery of the project.
Some chlorine was allegedly taken from a civilian water treatment center in Khartoum that had received the chemical from international aid groups.
U.S. officials appear to have treated the material as credible: visuals from the dossier were shared with American intelligence and used in a January 2025 assessment of whether Sudan had chemical weapons.
The findings add detail to accusations Sudan’s army has long denied, allegations that already triggered U.S. sanctions on Sudan and army chief Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.
What happens when a government secretly deploys chemical weapons against its own people and tries to bury the evidence?
How can the world uncover the truth when a sanctioned regime denies using chlorine bombs despite leaked internal confessions?
Chemical Weapons in Sudan’s Civil War (2024–2026): Evidence, Sanctions, and the Global Crisis of Accountability
Overview
In 2024, Sudanese Armed Forces were accused of using chlorine gas against the Rapid Support Forces, with visual and medical evidence showing chemical burns and environmental damage. Experts confirmed the attacks matched aerial chlorine barrel bombings, which only the Sudanese military could deliver. Investigations traced chlorine shipments to military-linked officials, raising concerns about diversion of dual-use chemicals. The US responded with sanctions after Sudan failed compliance checks, but acted unilaterally and withheld key evidence, weakening international support. Lack of independent OPCW verification and UN action fueled skepticism, while fears of chemical attacks triggered mass civilian evacuations and deepened Sudan’s humanitarian crisis.