ALBAWABA - Newsweek reported that the Iranian regime may have used toxic chemicals to suppress the protests that have swept the country in recent weeks, according to a former British official.
The magazine quoted former British MP Bill Rammell as saying he had seen a credible report detailing the severe mistreatment of detainees arrested in connection with the ongoing protests.
Rammell added, citing the report, that "there is a belief that some kind of toxic chemical was used against the protesters, causing some of them to die days after being injured."
Newsweek noted that it contacted the Iranian Foreign Ministry via email for comment but has not yet received a response.
Ramil noted that this information has not been independently verified, but stressed that if proven true, it would represent an "extraordinary escalation" in Tehran's tactics against its citizens, warning of serious legal and political repercussions, especially since Iran is a signatory to the Chemical Weapons Convention.
These allegations come amid widespread protests that erupted last December over economic conditions, before evolving into an unprecedented challenge to the country's religious leadership—the largest since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
