Did ISIS use chlorine gas?

A report published by Iraq’s Kurdistan Region Security Council (KRSC) on the Islamic State’s use of chlorine gas in the beginning of 2015 sparked concern in political and media circles inside and outside Iraq.

The US Department of Defence expressed its concern about the accusations against ISIS regarding the use of chlorine gas, which is internationally outlawed, and announced that they are collecting information from independent sources to prove that.

But Kurdish Peshmerga retired Brigadier Salah Fily stressed that there is conclusive evidence that the group used chlorine in its attacks on northern areas of Iraq two months ago, where fighters from the Peshmerga were injured in their battles in the western city of Kirkuk.

Fily told Al-Jazeera that chlorine gas exists in all regions dominated by ISIS in northern Iraq. It was used by the government in the purification of water wells, but the group was able to develop it and use it as a chemical weapon within a limited area.

He pointed out that 12 Peshmerga members were wounded in the attack and they are receiving treatment in hospitals in Kurdistan.

Fily explained that all information and details of the injuries which resulted from the chlorine gas attack have been presented to the local media along with the statement released by the region’s Supreme Security Council.

Exaggerations to justify intervention

Siamand Karim, a political analyst, did not rule out that Kurdish media and the US-led international coalition are exaggerating with the aim of justifying further military intervention, such as the use of ground forces, on the grounds that that the use of chemical weapons is a war crime that must be stopped.

Karim also told Al-Jazeera that this does not mean that the ISIS does not use internationally banned weapons, as the whole world is aware that they have the technical capabilities and experts within their ranks, and all these elements can be used at any moment in developing banned weapons.

He added that the organisation is not subjected to international law, as it is an entity and not a state.

The authorities in Baghdad and Erbil had previously accused ISIS militants, who controls large areas in Iraq and Syria, of using chlorine gas in their battles; but this is the first time authorities claim they have conclusive evidence in this regard.