Sardasht (Serdeşt): The First City Bombed with Chemical Weapons
- Hojîn Rostam
- Jun 5
- 4 min read
Introduction
Sardasht (Kurdish: Serdeşt) is a Kurdish town in the forested Zagros mountains of north-western Iran, near the Iraqi border. A quiet place of oak woods and mountain trade, it carries one of the grimmest distinctions in modern history: Sardasht was the first town in the world to be attacked with chemical weapons against its own civilian population.
That attack, in June 1987, came almost a year before the more famous gassing of Halabja across the border, and it marked Sardasht forever. This profile looks at the town, the atrocity it endured, and the resilience of its people.
Key Takeaways
• Sardasht (Kurdish: Serdeşt) is a Kurdish town in West Azerbaijan province, north-western Iran (Rojhelat).
• On 28 June 1987, Iraq attacked Sardasht with chemical weapons during the Iran–Iraq War.
• It is considered the first town in the world bombed with chemical weapons against a civilian population.
• The attack killed and injured hundreds, with many more suffering lifelong effects.
• Sardasht lies in a region of oak forests and is known for its nature, honey, and border trade.
Quick Facts
Name (Kurdish): Serdeşt
Country / Region: Iran (Rojhelat / Eastern Kurdistan)
Province: West Azerbaijan
Setting: Forested Zagros mountains near the Iraqi border
People: Kurdish (mainly Sunni)
Known For: The 1987 chemical attack; oak forests and honey
Date of Attack: 28 June 1987
Significance: First town gassed against its civilians
Contents
Where Is Sardasht?
Sardasht lies in the south of West Azerbaijan province in north-western Iran, high in the Zagros mountains close to the Iraqi border, south of Lake Urmia and not far from the Kurdish regions around Mahabad. It is a Sunni Kurdish town set among some of the most heavily forested country in Iran, a land of oak woods, springs, and steep valleys.
Its position on the frontier has long made it a town of border trade, and during the Iran–Iraq War that same frontier location placed it tragically in the path of the fighting.
A Town in the Forests
Away from its terrible modern fame, Sardasht is known within Iran for its natural beauty — the dense oak forests of the surrounding mountains, its honey, and its cool, green highland setting, so different from the deserts of much of the country. For its Kurdish inhabitants it has long been a modest but deeply rooted community, tied to the land and to the wider Kurdish world across the nearby border.
28 June 1987
On 28 June 1987, during the Iran–Iraq War, Iraqi aircraft dropped chemical bombs containing mustard gas on Sardasht, striking residential districts of the town. Hundreds of civilians were killed or injured in the attack and its aftermath. Because the bombs fell on an inhabited town rather than a battlefield, Sardasht is widely remembered as the first town in the world to be subjected to a chemical weapons attack against its civilian population — a grim milestone reached nearly a year before the gassing of Halabja.
A Wound That Endures
The horror of Sardasht did not end when the gas cleared. Thousands of survivors have lived for decades with the long-term effects of mustard gas — damaged lungs, eyes, and skin — and the town became a lasting symbol of the suffering of Kurds caught up in the Iran–Iraq War. Its fate is closely bound to that of Halabja, the Iraqi Kurdish town gassed in 1988; together the two names stand as the most haunting reminders of chemical warfare against the Kurdish people.
Sardasht Today
Today Sardasht is a living Kurdish town that carries its memory with quiet dignity, marking the anniversary of the attack and honouring its victims and survivors. Surrounded once more by its forests, it endures as a place of both deep beauty and deep remembrance — a small town that bore witness to one of the cruellest weapons of modern war, and refused to be erased by it.
Timeline
1980 — The Iran–Iraq War begins, engulfing the Kurdish border regions.
28 June 1987 — Iraq attacks Sardasht with chemical (mustard gas) weapons, striking civilians.
1988 — The chemical attack on Halabja across the border kills thousands of Kurds.
1988 — The Iran–Iraq War ends, but survivors of Sardasht suffer lasting effects.
today — Sardasht remembers the attack each year as a symbol of Kurdish suffering and survival.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is Sardasht famous?
Sardasht is remembered as the first town in the world attacked with chemical weapons against its civilian population, when Iraq bombed it with mustard gas on 28 June 1987 during the Iran–Iraq War.
What is Sardasht’s Kurdish name?
In Kurdish the town is called Serdeşt.
Where is Sardasht?
Sardasht (Serdeşt) is a Kurdish town in the south of West Azerbaijan province in north-western Iran, in the forested Zagros mountains near the Iraqi border.
How is Sardasht linked to Halabja?
Both were Kurdish towns attacked with chemical weapons — Sardasht in Iran in 1987 and Halabja in Iraq in 1988 — making them the two most haunting symbols of chemical warfare against the Kurds.
Related People, Places, and Topics
References and Further Reading
Comments