Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Al Mayadeen correspondent: The US vetoed a UNSC resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, arguing it does not condemn Hamas nor grant "Israel" the right to “self-defense.”
Israeli occupation forces issue a new bombing threat against civilian buildings in the Southern Lebanese towns of Borj Qalaouiye and Chehabiyeh.
Sources to Al Mayadeen: Extending the snapback mechanism deadline will test how independent Europeans truly are from the US.
Sources to Al Mayadeen: Activating the snapback mechanism will nullify the Cairo Agreement, shut the door on cooperation between the IAEA and Tehran, and bar inspections.
Sources to Al Mayadeen: The diplomatic window remains open, but signs of activating the snapback sanctions mechanism on Iran are increasing.
Sources to Al Mayadeen: Although the Cairo Agreement meets an important part of European demands, they have begun speaking of new conditions in recent communications.
Sources to Al Mayadeen: European countries show no independence in their stance toward Iran during the talks.
Israeli occupation forces issued bombing threats to bomb civilian buildings in Southern Lebanon.
Israeli media: Person behind shooting operation at Allenby Crossing is a Jordanian Army soldier.
Israeli media citing Emergency Services: Both wounded in Allenby shooting operation now dead.

100,000 tons of Nazi chemical weapons at bottom of Baltic Sea: Reports

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 9 Aug 2022 18:46
  • 11 Shares
3 Min Read

The corrosion of the materials will eventually trigger an environmental disaster.

  • x
  • Dumped chemical weapons litter the ocean floors (Euronews)
    Dumped chemical weapons litter the ocean floors (Euronews)

Polish newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza reported on Tuesday that up to 100,000 tons of chemical weapons of Nazi Germany left after World War II could be resting at the bottom of the Baltic Sea ready to trigger an environmental disaster as they corrode over time.

Gazeta Wyborcza wrote that between 40,000 to 100,000 tons of war-era weaponry lie at the bottom of various parts of the Baltic Sea. 

"The exact quantity is difficult to estimate today," the paper wrote. "It is similarly difficult to precisely define all the dumping sites. After the Potsdam conference, soldiers of the Soviet Union who disarmed ammunition depots in Poland and Germany were responsible for 'neutralising' German chemical weapons."

According to the newspaper, the chemical weapons in question are mainly barrels of mustard gas, aviation bombs, and mines containing chemical warfare agents, mainly mustard and arsenic.

The article reported that research by the Polish Academy of Sciences between 2011 and 2019 showed that mustard gas bombs pollute the sea to a radius of up to 70 meters, killing subaquatic flora and fauna.

Nazi chemical weapons were buried in the Baltic Sea in the first years after World War II by the decision of a specially created Trilateral Commission, comprising the US, the UK, and the Soviet Union.

Related News

Canada publishing Nazi list would aid 'Russian propaganda': Ukraine

US, UK 'de facto' behind Nord Stream explosions: Kremlin

The Gotland Basin in the sea's center between Sweden and the Baltic states was initially selected as the main dumping site.

"However the route turned out to be too far for the Russians," the paper wrote. "Tonnes of barrels were thrown from vessels at random places on the convoy routes. Crates of chemical weapons drifted until the wood decayed. Later they were carried by the currents to sit on the sea bed."

A second selected dumping site was the Bornholm Basin to the east of the Danish island of Bornholm, where according to official Soviet records, around 40,000 tons of weapons were dumped at a depth of about 100 meters.

Dozens of tons were also dumped in the Gdansk Basin near northern Poland's Hel Peninsula.

Last week, it was reported that a series of explosions took place in a police depot that contained Nazi-era explosives. This incident sparked a massive fire in the Grunewald forest, which took many hours to contain. 

Munitions dating back to World War II are not uncommon finds in Germany and other EU countries.

Read more: CO2 emissions in EU states increased by 6.3% in 2021

  • Baltic sea
  • Nazi
  • Climate crisis

Most Read

Why is Choose Love using a firm with British and US intelligence connections to run a pro-Palestine musical event? (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)

Together for Palestine: Troubling questions about the organisers of this huge event

  • Opinion
  • 17 Sep 2025
Uprising against Volker Turk at the Human Rights Council over Gaza.

Uprising against Volker Turk at the Human Rights Council over Gaza

  • Politics
  • 12 Sep 2025
Lapid: Egypt’s Arab Force plan a 'severe blow' to normalization

Lapid: Egypt’s Arab Force plan a 'severe blow' to normalization

  • Palestine
  • 14 Sep 2025
An Israeli tank explodes following an ambush by al-Qassam Brigades in Gaza, Occupied Palestine, undated (Al-Qassam Military Media)

12 Israeli soldiers killed, wounded in Resistance operation in Gaza

  • Politics
  • 18 Sep 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
A Hezbollah supporter who lost his sight in a pager attack carried out by "Israel" on Sept. 17, 2024, covers his eyes with a red headband inscribed with the name "Hussein" during Ashoura, July 6, 2025 (AP)
Politics

'We Have Recovered': Lebanon marks 1st anniversary of Pager Attack

The Arab neighborhood of El Za'im, on the outskirts of east Occupied Al-Quds in the West Bank, near where Israeli government says housing units will be built as part of the E1 settlement project, Thursday, August 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Palestine

'Israel’s' deliberate policies drive West Bank economy toward collapse

Ben & Jerry's ice cream shop, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025, in Cambridge, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Politics

Ben & Jerry’s co-founder resigns over parent company curbing activism

Trump’s approval rating falls to new low in second term: Poll
US & Canada

Trump’s approval rating falls to new low in second term: Poll

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS