U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
March 16, 2001
STATEMENT BY RICHARD BOUCHER, SPOKESMAN
Anniversary of the Halabja Massacre

Today marks the thirteenth anniversary of Saddam Hussein’s chemical weapons attack on
Halabja, a predominantly Kurdish city in northeastern Iraq. On March 16, 1988, an
estimated 5,000 civilians were killed and 10,000 injured when Iraqi air forces bombarded
Halabja with mustard and other poison gases. Thirteen years after the massacre, the people
of Halabja still suffer from very high rates of serious diseases such as cancer, neurological
disorders, birth defects and miscarriages.

Saddam Hussein’s chemical weapons attack on Halabja was not an isolated incident. It was
part of a systematic campaign ordered by Saddam Hussein and led by his lieutenant Ali
Hassan al-Majid, the infamous “Chemical Ali,” against Iraqi Kurdish civilians. International
observers estimate Iraqi forces killed 50,000 to 100,000 people during the 1988 campaign
known as “Anfal” which means “the spoils.” Further, the Iraqi regime also killed thousands
of Iranians with chemical weapons during the Iran-Iraq War from 1983 to 1988.

We are working towards the day when those ultimately responsible for the decision to order
the poison gas bombardment of Halabja can be brought to justice before an international
tribunal, in a free and democratic Iraq, or wherever they may be found. These crimes will
not be forgotten. As we remember Halabja, we wish to reaffirm to ourselves and the
international community that Saddam Hussein’s regime must never be permitted to rebuild
its program for the development of weapons of mass destruction.
*****************
The Kurdistan Observer
www.kurdistanobserver.com