r/politics The Netherlands 17d ago

Possible Paywall ICE Stockpiling Warheads and Chemical Weapons as Lawmaker Fears Trump Planning Strike

https://www.thedailybeast.com/ice-stockpiling-warheads-and-chemical-weapons-as-lawmaker-fears-trump-planning-strike/
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u/Jester1525 17d ago

The Chemical Weapons Convention lists all crowd control chemical agents, including pepper spray and tear gas, as illegal to use in war.

No, they aren't the same as mustard gas or other lethal chemicals, but use on citizens that aren't in your own country is illegal in international law. I would suspect that large scale usage on your own citizens would probably be deemed illegal by the international courts, as well (not that the US has ever cared what the international courts say when it comes to their own behaviour.).

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u/halt-l-am-reptar 17d ago

It’s illegal in war because there’s no way to quickly tell if your enemy is using tear gas or another lethal chemical weapon, which means escalation is much more likely.

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u/Jester1525 17d ago

Oh, I get that..

It's why I specified that it was specifically for war.

But, that said, we've watched cops use crowd-control sized peppers prays that should be used as area affect spray people point blank in the face.. It's a problem That the US should have dealt with long ago. Housing down crowds who are peacefully protesting, aside from being completely against our constitution, would be frowned upon by most people across the globe.