By Fatma Younis
Israel has shared intelligence with the United States asserting that Iran is considering the use of chemical weapons against its adversaries, according to U.S. and regional officials. The information has been met with alarm by some American officials and deep skepticism by others.
Divergent Views Within U.S. Administration
Some American officials view the Israeli intelligence as part of a pressure campaign by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to persuade the Trump administration to return to major combat operations against Iran. Other officials believe the threats should be taken seriously, given recent warnings about Iran’s preparations to attack American interests.
Regional Skepticism
Israel has also shared some of the information with officials in Gulf countries. Several of those officials doubted that Iran was developing plans to use chemical weapons and believe Israel is trying to push the United States and its partners back into a more intense phase of the conflict.
Longstanding Concerns Over Iranian Chemical Capabilities
American claims about Iran’s chemical weapons program date back decades. In 2003, Iran acknowledged it had developed chemical capabilities during the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s but said it later dismantled them. In recent years, the United States has publicly asserted in its annual unclassified intelligence assessments that Iran “likely aims” to continue its research and development of chemical weapons.
