38 Years Pass Over Sewsenan Chemical Attack

PUKMEDIA

Cemetery of the martyrs of Sesenan chemical attack.

Today, 22 March 2026, marks 38 years since the tragedy in Sewsenan, which was subjected to a chemical weapons bombardment on 22 March 1988.

The attack occurred five days after the Halabja chemical attack and resulted in the deaths of 69 civilians, while a further 30 people were injured.

Sewsenan is located within the Qaradagh district and includes nearly 18 villages, and its population exceeds two thousand citizens.

On 16 March 1988, the city of Halabja was struck by a large-scale chemical weapons attack carried out by the regime of Saddam Hussein during the final phase of the Iran–Iraq War. Warplanes dropped toxic chemical agents over the city, killing around 5,000 civilians within hours and injuring thousands more. The victims included men, women, children and elderly residents who were unable to escape the poisonous gases.

The attack on Sewsenan and Halabja formed part of the broader Anfal Campaign carried out by the fallen Iraqi Ba'ath regime against the Kurdish population during the late 1980s. The campaign led to the destruction of thousands of villages and the deaths of over 181,000 innocent Kurds, some of them buried alive, and displacement of thousands more.



PUKMEDIA