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Chemical and biological weapons have a long history in warfare. World War I saw widespread use of gas attacks. By the end of the war in 1918, one in four of all shells fired contained chemical weapons.
Biological weapons – weapons that spread disease – have been used less often, partly because of problems transmitting infectious material. One notorious example is the British settlers' 'gift' of smallpox-infected blankets to Native American communities in the mid-18th century.
The 1925 Geneva Protocol outlawed the use of biological and chemical weapons in warfare, without banning the development and stockpiling of these weapons. Biological weapons were banned outright in 1972 and chemical weapons in 1993.
Terrorist groups have carried out chemical and biological attacks. Fortunately, to date their effect has been very limited. The first known incident of 'non-conventional' terrorism was eccentric as well as non-lethal. In 1984 in the United States, followers of the cult leader Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh infected salad bars in several restaurants with salmonella. Around 700 people fell ill as a result.
The anthrax attacks that disrupted the United States postal system in October 2001 caused five deaths and 23 non-fatal infections.
As for chemical terrorism, the 1995 sarin gas attack on the Tokyo underground system, carried out by the religious cult Aum Shinrikyo, injured and traumatised thousands of commuters but only killed 12 people – far fewer than the cult had intended.
Chemical and biological weapons are difficult to manufacture and unpredictable in their impact. As yet, there have been no terrorist incidents involving the third and most deadly form of unconventional attack – nuclear arms. A nuclear weapon or a simple 'dirty bomb', which would explode and scatter radioactive material, could be a true weapon of mass destruction. Fortunately, there is no evidence that terrorist groups have this type of weapon – yet.