Algeria: Toxic colonisation
Summary
A documentary reveals that the French army secretly used chemical weapons during the Algerian war of independence, violating international law. The film shows evidence from archives and testimonies that France attacked Algerian fighters and civilians with poison gas between 1956 and 1959.Key Facts
- The French army used chemical weapons in Algeria during the independence war, against international rules.
- Evidence includes a 1956 letter from a French army commander mentioning chemical weapons use.
- France created a Special Weapons Unit in late 1956 to use CN2D gas on Algerian fighters in caves.
- Around 8,000 to 10,000 chemical attacks happened, but only 440 have been documented so far.
- One attack in March 1959 killed about 150 civilians at Ghar Ben Shatouh.
- France did not officially ban chemical weapons until 1993, decades after Algeria became independent.
- The chemical used, CN2D gas, was also employed by France in World War I.
- The 1925 Geneva Protocol prohibits the use of chemical weapons, which France broke during this conflict.
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