Chemical Agent Attacks in Japan
Congressional Research Service: Report for Congress, 95-411 F
May 4, 1995
-ti- Chemical Agent Attacks in Japan
By Steven R. Bowman, Analyst in National Defense
Foreign Affairs and National Defense Division
Chemical Agent Attacks in Japan
Steven R. Bowman
Analyst in National Defense
Foreign Affairs and National Defense Division
The release of the nerve agent Sarin in Tokyo's subway
system on March 20, marks the first clearly non-state terrorist
use of chemical weapons. The agent was highly diluted and
fatalities were relatively few (10), though the number of injured
was substantial (5,000+, with 600 hospitalized). This incident
clearly indicates the potential political effectiveness of
chemical weapons against an unprotected civilian population. Once
a population has been sensitized by an incident like this, even
the threat of CW can become significantly disruptive. Some have
credited fear of another attack with contributing to the
cautiousness of the Japanese police investigation.[1]
l. Initially discovered in the 1930's in the course of
insecticide research, nerve agents destroy the
regulatory ability of the body's nervous system. Though
colloquially called "nerve gases", these agents are, in
fact, liquids which give off a vapor. Sarin, also known
as "GB", is an ester of phosphonofluoridic acid. It
inhibits the production of cholinesterase in the body,
an enzyme that regulates nerve impulses. The effects of
nerve agents are highly dependent upon the amount of
agent an individual is exposed to. Exposure to
55mg/cubic meter is considered sufficient dosage to
incapacitate, while 70mg/cubic meter is sufficient to
kill when inhaled. Nerve agents can also be absorbed
through the skin, with a percutaneous lethal dosage
estimated to be 12,000 mg for Sarin. Sarin is
considered a "non-persistent" because it dissipates
relatively quickly ( l/4-4 hours) depending on
temperature, wind speed, and precipitation. Initial
nerve agent effects are difficulty in breathing,
dimming vision, accompanied by pain in the eyes and
nose. As symptoms intensify, the victim is subject to
nausea, involuntary urination and defecation, and loss
of muscle control. Death occurs by asphyxiation as a
result of muscle exhaustion and pulmonary edema.
Depending on the dosage received, death can result
within 2-15 minutes.
Packages leaking Sarin nerve agent were placed almost
simultaneously aboard five subway cars, eventually affecting
passengers in sixteen stations. Five days previously, three
briefcases had been discovered in a Tokyo subway station. Each
case contained three tanks with an unknown liquid, a motorized
fan, vent, and battery power source. On March 5, nineteen
passengers on the Yokohama subway were hospitalized for eye and
respiratory pain from unidentified fumes. In June 1994, seven
people were killed by a still unexplained release of Sarin in the
central Japanese town of Matsumoto in the neighborhood of a
Buddhist religious cult-- Aum Shinri Kyo. Subsequent police raids
have discovered literally tons of Sarin precursor chemicals,
along with
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sophisticated laboratories and production equipment in the cult's
facilities. Police investigations have also revealed evidence
that Aum members were carrying out research on botulism and other
biological warfare agents. Aum Shinri Kyo's leader has denied any
connection with the CW attack, but remains in hiding.
On April 19, about 400 people received medical treatment
after a gas was apparently released in Yokohama' main railway
station and a commuter train. Yokohama authorities initially
identified the gas as phosgene (carbonyl chloride), but now
believe that it was a form of tear-gas or respiratory irritant
and that the incident may have been a "copy-cat" attack.
At a time when over 150 nations have signed a Chemical
Weapons Convention (CWC) to ban these weapons, this incident
points out that the arena for their use has expanded. Chemical
weapons can no longer be treated as a monopoly of nation-states
or state-sponsored terrorists. The occasion for their use is no
longer only international conflict. Relatively small amounts of
chemical agent, amateurishly dispersed, are now demonstrably a
threat to peacetime urban populations. This may serve to shift
some attention away from international proliferation and
sophisticated delivery systems to domestic control issues. The
CWC requires State Parties to criminalize even the manufacture of
chemical agents like Sarin, which would provide most countries
the first legal framework to address this unique threat.
Implementing legislation for the CWC, which will be considered by
both the House and Senate when submitted, will address this
issue. The Biological Antiterrorism Act of 1989 criminalized the
manufacture of biological weapons in the United States or by U.S.
citizens.
The CWC has been submitted to the Senate for its advice and
consent. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee may hold
additional hearings before it reports the ratification
resolution, and it is likely that the implications of the Tokyo
CW attack will come under examination. Supporters of the
Convention may contend that such incidents should speed up the
ratification process, bringing the Convention into force, and
beginning the international process for the monitoring and
destruction of chemical weapons. For others, the incident may
exacerbate concerns about the potential effectiveness of the
Convention's verification regime, particularly with regard to
production of relatively small amounts of CW useful for
non-military objectives.
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