The Tenuous Taboo: Egypt, ISIS, and Chemical Weapons in the Middle East

Diplomatic Courier ^ | October 7, 2015 | Asher Orkaby, PhD

[SunkenCiv]

...With the guidance of former Nazi German munitions experts, Nasser expanded Egypt's chemical weapons program to include the production of mustard gas, chlorine, phosgene, and according to several intelligence estimates, even advanced nerve agents. A short four years later, Egypt deployed this new class of weapons in January 1967 on the small northern Yemeni village of Kitaf, located within the vicinity of the Yemeni tribal opposition's cave headquarters.

International media, whose attention had already been drawn to South Arabia by the continuation of hostilities, wasted little time in shining the spotlight and launching full-scale journalistic inquiry into Egypt's use of chemical weapons, to little impact. In the ensuing months of conflict, Nasser authorized the use of poison gas bombs in a dozen other instances, contributing to the mounting Yemeni death toll and the psychological trauma of civilians who feared dying from the unseen. Separate investigations were conducted by teams of scientists from the U.S., Britain and the International Red Cross all confirming the presence of illegal poison gas in the field samples obtained in Yemen... however, no Western country was willing to lead a censure of Egypt's chemical war...

Even the United Nations and the International Red Cross hid behind bureaucratic formalities as a way to avoid confronting Egypt. Secretary General U Thant claimed a UN "catch-22": an inability to launch an investigation of Egypt's chemical war in Yemen without an official request from a member nation, knowing full well that no country would lead an international censure of Egypt. Andre Rochat, the head of the Red Cross mission to Yemen conducted a full investigation, but refused to release the results to the public, fearing this might compromise the neutrality of the organization and Egypt would then evict his fledgling mission from South Arabia.

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TOPICS: History
KEYWORDS: andrerochat; egypt; history; houthi; houthis; iran; kitaf; nasser; redcross; saudiarabia; suezcanal; unifil; unitednations; unrwa; untiednations; uthant; yemen

[SunkenCiv]

Nasser was one of the creepiest Arab leaders, but the later creepy Arab and other muzzie leaders have relegated him to the kiddie table.

[SunkenCiv]

In 1967, Syria attempted to divert water away from Israel, triggering tensions that led to war. Israel's military strength was underestimated, and within six days, they defeated three Arab armies. Since the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, tensions remained high. Israel had geographical disadvantages—narrow borders, lack of strategic depth, and a small population—which made preemptive strikes a key defense strategy. 

When 3 Arab Nations Tried To Destroy Israel:
The Six-Day War Explained | 48:25
Real History | 388K subscribers | 135,462 views | March 21, 2025

[SunkenCiv]

Filmed in Israel, Palestine, Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Moscow and Washington, The Six-Day War takes a contemporary look at the conflict. The weeks leading up to the war, the six days of fighting and the aftermath of the conflict form the narrative backbone of the film.  

Israel, Palestine: The Six Day War
[sez 'Dubbed', it wasn't on the Roku;
on the browser it appears to be, just not in English] | 1:44:02 
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