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The existence of a detailed report documenting how chemical weapons were used by the Imperial Japanese Army in China has been confirmed for the first time, a Japanese historian said Sunday.
The official report, compiled by a frontline poison gas battalion posted in northern China, recorded that the unit used munitions containing a blister agent and a sternutatory agent in 1939 during the Second Sino-Japanese War, according to historian Seiya Matsuno.
The blister agent inflamed the skin and mucous membranes, and the sternutatory agent caused extreme pain in the respiratory system.
Matsuno said it was the first discovery of a report in which the army itself detailed the use of poison gases.
Although the Imperial Japanese Army systematically destroyed all records of the war after its defeat, the discovered report may have been kept personally by a member of the army.
“Revealing what happened on the battlefield during the Sino-Japanese War is just the tip of the iceberg. We must investigate the truth in order to learn from it and prevent this tragic history from repeating itself,” Matsuno said.
www.japantimes.co.jp
The official report, compiled by a frontline poison gas battalion posted in northern China, recorded that the unit used munitions containing a blister agent and a sternutatory agent in 1939 during the Second Sino-Japanese War, according to historian Seiya Matsuno.
The blister agent inflamed the skin and mucous membranes, and the sternutatory agent caused extreme pain in the respiratory system.
Matsuno said it was the first discovery of a report in which the army itself detailed the use of poison gases.
Although the Imperial Japanese Army systematically destroyed all records of the war after its defeat, the discovered report may have been kept personally by a member of the army.
“Revealing what happened on the battlefield during the Sino-Japanese War is just the tip of the iceberg. We must investigate the truth in order to learn from it and prevent this tragic history from repeating itself,” Matsuno said.
Report documenting how Japan used chemical weapons during Second Sino-Japanese War found for first time
The existence of a detailed report documenting how chemical weapons were used by the Imperial Japanese Army in China has been confirmed for the first time, a Japanese historian said Sunday.
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