An analysis by the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies says independent verification gives weight to reports that the Sudanese Armed Forces built and used chlorine bombs in 2024. It adds that questions about the programme's stockpile and accountability remain open.
The International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) said in an online analysis published on 3 November that there is "considerable evidence" that the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) have used chemical weapons in the war, "albeit on a limited scale". The analysis, by Annemiek Dols and Karl Dewey, notes that the international community has yet to verify the allegations.
It follows a denial on 22 October at the UN General Assembly's First Committee. There, Faisal Abdel-Adheem Salem of Sudan's UN mission rejected the accusations and reaffirmed Sudan's commitment to the Chemical Weapons Convention. The army has repeatedly called US accusations baseless.
What the reports allege
The IISS draws on material published in September by the New York Times and the Washington Post, which it says came from an unnamed Middle Eastern intelligence agency. According to those reports, 20 chlorine canisters, "enough for 1,100 bombs", were imported from Egypt, and chlorine was also taken from water-purification plants supplied by aid organisations. The reports describe bombs combining an explosive warhead with a 15kg chlorine payload. They say the project began in July 2024, that about 300 munitions had been stockpiled by October 2024, and that two incidents occurred in September 2024 around the al-Jaili refinery north of Khartoum.
The authors are cautious about the sourcing. They note that the intelligence agency's motives are unclear and recall past intelligence failures on chemical and biological weapons in the region, including the 1998 US strike on Khartoum's al-Shifa plant. Even so, they conclude that low-tech delivery methods, the newspapers' verification work and corroboration by European media "lend greater credibility" to the assessment that the SAF developed and used chemical weapons.
Sanctions and accountability
The United States imposed sanctions over chemical weapons use in May 2025. The IISS says the programme was reportedly ended soon afterwards, suggesting the sanctions deterred further use. The UN said on 21 September 2026 that it was ready to investigate if given a mandate. The analysis describes Sudan's seat on the executive council of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), which it holds from May 2026 to May 2027, as "a double-edged sword". Outstanding questions, it says, include what became of the programme and those who worked on it, and accountability for those who planned and used the weapons.
The Tasis-led Government of Peace and Unity has called for an independent international investigation. On 4 November its UN representative, Al-Gouni Mustafa Abubakr al-Sharif, renewed that call in a statement reported by Sudan Mix. He urged accountability based on the findings, including for the military chain of command. The IISS notes that, set against overall casualties of 150,000 to 400,000, chemical weapons use remains small in scale.
Image: Headquarters of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in The Hague, 2017. CEphoto, Uwe Aranas, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.