Islamic State fighters are using the scorpion-filled weapons to incite fear in towns under siege
Bomb canisters – packed with the poisonous arachnids – are being blasted into towns and villages to scatter scorpions and incite panic, a British military expert has revealed.
Former head of chemical and biological weapons for NATO and the British army Hamish de Bretton-Gordon described the arachnid attacks as “madness”.
He told The Daily Mirror: “It’s madness.
“IS have improvised devices to launch them.
“They promote the fact that they are doing it and it creates panic.
“Scorpions are robust – even if they are launched a couple of miles, when the canister breaks thousands are flung out and start crawling all around.”
The 24in scorpion bombs are not used for mass casualties but instead designed to maximise the terrorist group’s “psychological impact” on the villagers.
Mr Bretton-Gordon, who returned from Baghdad last week where he had been advising security forces, added: “The main thing is creating fear.”
