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U.S. Department of State Office of the Spokesman Press Statement

Press Statement by James P. Rubin, Spokesman
March 16, 1999

Anniversary of the Halabja Massacre

On March 16, 1988 the Iraqi military attacked Halabja, a Kurdish town in northern Iraq, with chemical weapons. An estimated 5000 civilians were killed and more than 10,000 were injured.

Halabja was not the only instance in which the Baghdad regime used chemical weapons. Dozens of other chemical weapons attacks on Iraqi Kurdish civilians were reported during the 1988-89 "Anfal" campaign. An estimated 20,000 Iranian soldiers were killed in Iraqi chemical attacks from 1983-1988, during the Iran-Iraq war.

The Iraqi regime never expressed remorse for Halabja. In fact, it has defended its use of chemical weapons in its war with Iran by claiming, "every nation has the right to protect itself against invasion," even though a 1925 Geneva Protocol, to which Iraq is subject, outlaws the use of chemical weapons.

Eleven years after the massacre, the people of Halabja still suffer from the effects of the monstrous March 16 attack, including much higher rates of serious diseases, cancer, birth defects and miscarriages.

Last fall, the Department of State sponsored a major conference in Washington to review the condition of the Halabja victims and to examine what can be done to assist them. This week, we will announce plans to provide significant funding for a feasibility study in northern Iraq to benefit the people of Halabja.

Today, the sympathies of the United States are with the people of Halabja. We remind ourselves and the international community that the UN must remain vigilant to stop Iraq from rebuilding its weapons of mass destruction programs.

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