Dutch company not liable in Iraqi mustard-gas case, appeal court rules

The Hague Court of Appeal has ruled that Otjiaha, formerly Melchemie, is not liable in a civil damages case over chemical supplies to Iraq in the 1980s, ANP reported on Tuesday. The claim was brought by four Iranians and the heirs of a fifth who sought compensation in connection with Iraqi mustard-gas attacks during the war with Iran. [1] [3]

Otjiaha supplied Iraq with thionyl chloride in 1982, 1983 and 1984. A district court rejected the claim against the company in 2023, finding it had not been shown that Otjiaha knew or should have known Iraq would use the chemical to make mustard gas for the war. The court did not decide whether those supplies were used in the attacks behind the claim. [2]

Follow the Money reported in June that a Dutch foreign ministry official had warned a Melchemie director on 2 April 1984 that Iraq was using mustard gas and buying chemicals under the guise of agricultural pesticide purchases. The precise date of Otjiaha’s 1984 delivery is unknown. [4] [2]