BBC finds Georgian authorities may have used WWI-era chemicals against protesters
The British outlet BBC has published an investigation claiming that the Georgian government may have used a World War I-era chemical agent to suppress anti-government protests in late 2024.
“It felt like [the water] was burning,” BBC quotes one protester who was hit by a water cannon during the crackdown. He said the incident caused symptoms including vomiting, coughing, and rapid breathing, which lasted for weeks. Other victims reported similar effects.
The article states that BBC journalists spoke with chemical weapons experts, sources within Georgia’s special police units, and medical professionals, who found that the water cannons may have contained a substance called bromobenzyl cyanide, also known as “camite.”
BBC reports that the substance was first used by France against Germany during World War I. There is little documented evidence of its subsequent use, and it is believed to have been phased out in the 1930s over concerns about the long-term effects of its deployment. It was later replaced by CS gas, commonly known as “tear gas.”
The article describes the case of Konstantin Chakhunashvili, a Georgian paediatrician who participated in protests in Tbilisi. He said his skin “burned” for several days, and the sensation could not be washed off with water.
Chakhunashvili discovered that other victims experienced similar effects and wanted to know if anyone else had reported the same symptoms. The information he collected confirmed earlier reports by journalists, doctors, and civil society organisations: a chemical substance had been added to water cannons, although the ruling Georgian Dream party and the Ministry of Internal Affairs have so far refused to disclose which substance was used, despite repeated requests.
Lasha Shergelashvili, formerly responsible for police riot-control equipment, said it was the same substance he had been asked to test for use in water cannons in 2009.
According to him, its effects were unlike anything he had encountered before. Simply standing near the sprayed area made breathing difficult, and he and 15–20 colleagues testing the substance could not easily wash it off. Shergelashvili added that colleagues who still hold official positions reported that the substance is still in use.
BBC says it obtained a copy of an inventory list from a Georgian special police unit, dated December 2019, which included two unnamed chemical substances listed simply as “Chemical liquid UN1710” and “Chemical powder UN3439.”
Experts believe these were most likely bromobenzyl cyanide, also known as “camite,” which was developed by the Entente powers (Britain, France, and Russia) for use in World War I.
Another former senior Georgian police official confirmed that the same substance was used during the Tbilisi protests in November–December 2024.
Representatives of the Georgian Dream party called the BBC investigation “absurd” and stated that the police acted within the law in response to “illegal actions.”
Crackdown on protests in Georgia
