For years, Shah Murad Javanrouei, a Kurdish hunter from a village near Mount Shahu in western Iran, says he watched large, covered military trucks make their way to a Revolutionary Guards base on the mountain’s slopes. The area, where he gathered wild herbs used in pharmaceutical production, had long been part of his daily life. But after the 40-day conflict that erupted in late February and ended in early April, access to the mountain was largely cut off, he said, as Revolutionary Guard intelligence units closed surrounding roads and barred local residents from approaching the site.
“For more than five years, I have seen a constant flow of large military trucks, fully covered and accompanied by heavy security escorts from the Revolutionary Guards, traveling to and from the base on Mount Shahu,” Mr. Javanrouei told Alhurra.
From the outside, he said, the installation appears too small to account for the level of activity. Only a handful of buildings are visible above ground, and the site occupies a relatively limited area. Yet the steady movement of trucks — particularly at night — has fueled speculation among local residents and Iranian Kurdish opposition groups, who say the facility contains underground installations overseen by the Revolutionary Guards.
Alhurra was unable to independently verify the nature of the site or gain access to the area. However, accounts from residents and information provided by Kurdish opposition leaders echo broader allegations that Iran has developed a largely hidden network of facilities linked to chemical and biological research alongside its better-known nuclear and missile programs. According to opposition sources, some of those facilities operate under civilian, medical or academic cover.
Four officials from Iranian Kurdish opposition parties told Alhurra that information gathered from sources inside Iran’s Kurdish region, including individuals they described as having ties to the Revolutionary Guards, suggests that the Mount Shahu facility is involved in the production and development of chemical materials. They alleged that the site is linked to chemical warheads designed for ballistic missiles and loitering drones, as well as munitions used in crowd-control operations.
The claims are difficult to verify in a country where military and border regions remain tightly controlled by security agencies. Yet they take on added significance against the backdrop of longstanding U.S. accusations that Iran has failed to fully disclose activities related to chemical weapons.
In July 2024, the U.S. State Department imposed sanctions on Hakiman Shargh Research Company, accusing it of involvement in Iranian chemical weapons research and development. Washington said the company had engaged in activities that materially contributed to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction by Iran.
The sanctions followed repeated U.S. calls for Tehran to address what Washington described as failures to comply with obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention. American officials have maintained since 2018 that Iran has not fully disclosed its chemical weapons-related facilities and activities.
The State Department also accused Iran of developing pharmaceutical-based agents for potential use in a chemical weapons program, pledging to continue efforts to counter any attempt by Tehran to expand such capabilities.
Reports of Unexplained Health Problems
In villages surrounding Mount Shahu, residents say concerns extend beyond military convoys.
Mehdi Mohajeri, a local resident, said foul odors have periodically spread through the area for years, particularly at night, without any clear explanation.
“It is not only the smell,” Mr. Mohajeri said. “Many of us, including myself, have developed skin allergies and breathing difficulties that seem to worsen over time.”
Similar accounts emerged in interviews conducted by Alhurra with residents and opposition figures, who said the region became even more restricted following the recent conflict.
According to opposition leaders, what residents describe near Mount Shahu is not an isolated case. Iranian dissidents and analysts interviewed by Alhurra said the Revolutionary Guards began developing chemical and biological warfare capabilities during the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s and expanded those efforts over subsequent decades through a network of laboratories and research facilities operating under pharmaceutical and medical cover.
Opposition sources claim that dozens of universities, medical institutions and research centers across Iran contain laboratories connected to such programs. Some, they allege, are overseen by organizations linked to the Revolutionary Guards, while others are associated with Iran’s Defense Ministry.
Those sources further claim that more than 30 university, medical and chemical research facilities were damaged during recent Israeli and American strikes, disrupting operations and destroying infrastructure. They allege that some laboratories resumed activity after a cease-fire that has remained in effect since April.
Among the institutions cited by opposition groups are Imam Hossein University, Malek Ashtar University of Technology, Shahid Beheshti University, Sharif University of Technology, Iran University of Science and Technology, Amirkabir University of Technology, the Pasteur Institute of Iran, the Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute and Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences.
Many of these institutions are well-established centers for research in medicine, chemistry, biology and vaccine development. Opposition figures argue, however, that the overlap between civilian scientific research and military applications provides cover for sensitive activities.
Allegations From Iran’s Peripheral Regions
In Ahvaz, Hamid Motasher, head of the Ahwazi Liberal Party, said the Revolutionary Guards had concentrated a significant portion of their alleged chemical and biological weapons infrastructure in Ahvaz, Kurdistan and Baluchistan — regions largely populated by ethnic minorities.
“The Revolutionary Guards hide their weapons-of-mass-destruction facilities behind medical institutions and civilian research centers,” Mr. Motasher said. “Facilities listed in official records as pharmaceutical laboratories or emergency centers are, in reality, sites dedicated to the development of nerve agents and biological toxins.”
According to the Ahwazi Liberal Party, the Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute in Ahvaz operates publicly as a civilian institution but also houses laboratories involved in biological agent research. Party officials allege that work there has involved the modification of viruses, bacteria and naturally occurring toxins with potential military applications.
They claim researchers have worked on hemorrhagic fever viruses, anthrax bacteria and toxic compounds that could theoretically be dispersed through air, food or water supplies.
No independent laboratory evidence was provided to substantiate those allegations, and Alhurra was unable to verify them.
Ahwazi opposition sources also pointed to what they described as the involvement of the Shahid Meisami Research Center and the Pasteur Institute of Iran in biological research with military applications. They alleged that both facilities were damaged during recent military operations.
Local Concerns and Medical Accounts
A physician working at a hospital in Ahvaz, identified by Alhurra under the pseudonym “Hazem,” said local hospitals had for years treated patients suffering from recurring symptoms including severe diarrhea, skin disorders and respiratory problems.
“For years we have received large numbers of patients suffering from gastrointestinal illnesses, skin conditions and breathing difficulties,” the physician said. “Many come from the Zohour district, where the Razi Center is located.”
He said standard tests had not linked the illnesses to known chemical agents but suggested that some naturally derived toxins would not necessarily appear in routine screenings.
The doctor’s claims could not be independently verified.
Nevertheless, such accounts have contributed to local concerns about activities near facilities that opposition groups say are connected to secret programs.
Claims of Domestic Use
Opposition figures also contend that some of the alleged capabilities have been used inside Iran.
In April, Israel’s Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies published a report alleging that Iranian authorities used aerosolized fentanyl derivatives and medetomidine during protests in January 2026. The report suggested the substances may have been delivered through grenades, mortar rounds, spray-equipped vehicles or drones.
According to the report, exposure could cause sudden collapse, loss of consciousness, neurological impairment, confusion, temporary paralysis and, in some cases, delayed deaths.
Seeking to examine those claims, Alhurra interviewed activists from Ilam, Tehran, Tabriz and Kermanshah who participated in demonstrations that began in late December and continued into February. Several said they had witnessed or documented cases of suffocation, fainting and temporary paralysis following the deployment of gas canisters during crowd-control operations.
Koran Mehriyar, an activist from Ilam province, said he lost the use of his limbs for more than two months after a gas canister exploded near him during protests in January.
“I first experienced severe breathing difficulties,” he said. “Then I lost the ability to move, even though I remained fully conscious. Riot police arrested me and transferred me to a hospital, where I remained under supervision for two months.”
A Tehran-based activist, who requested anonymity because of fears of arrest, said a friend died approximately a month after inhaling gas released during a protest. The activist said she could not establish a direct causal link but believed the exposure contributed to her friend’s condition.
The accounts echo broader allegations by activists, opposition groups and some medical sources that Iranian authorities have used substances more potent than conventional tear gas in suppressing demonstrations.
Difficult to Verify
Iran routinely rejects Western allegations concerning weapons of mass destruction and maintains that it complies with its international obligations.
The United States, however, has repeatedly said that Tehran has not provided a full accounting of its chemical-related activities and that some programs presented as pharmaceutical or medical research may have military applications.
The allegations raised by residents, opposition figures and activists draw attention to an area that has received far less scrutiny than Iran’s nuclear and missile programs: the possibility of a covert network of chemical and biological research facilities whose existence remains difficult to verify and whose activities remain largely hidden from public view.
Adapted and translated from the original Arabic.
