Rajneeshee cult

We have already seen a case of large casualties that was due to food contamination with a bacterial agent, the 1984 attack by the Rajneeshee cult with Salmonella typhimurium, although no deaths were directly attributable to this hioterrorist attack. This type of assault—basically a crime of opportunity using food-borne bacteria—is probably the more likely type of bioterrorist event we may encounter in the future. 

March Referring to a 1983 incident. United Nations (UN) document S/16433 concludes that chemical weapons had been used during the ongoing Iran-Iraq War. September The Rajneeshee cult spreads Salmonella enteritica serotype typhimurium at restaurants in The Dalles, Oregon, causing more than 700 to become ill no fatalities result. A U.S. Public Health Service official subsequently declares the incident the result of poor hygiene. 

Despite significant interest in unconventional weapons, there have been few instances of widespread death or incapacitation due to CBRN use by terrorists, and the number of casualties pales in comparison to those killed by more conventional explosives, armed attacks and arson. Since 1968, more than 14,000 people have been killed by bombing, and nearly 6,000 by armed attack, but CBRN attacks have accounted for less than 20 deaths [41]. The two most notorious unconventional attacks in modern history, Aum Shinrikyo s gassing of a Tokyo subway in 1995 and the anthrax attacks in the U.S. in the fall of 2001, killed a total of 17 people. The food poisoning by the Rajneeshees in Oregon in 1984 has also received much attention. While there were no fatalities when the cult poisoned several salad bars with Salmonella, there were more than 700 injuries. 

Several cult members were involved in the planning and execution of the salmonella attacks, but only two of the Baghwan s chief lieutenants were prosecuted. This pair received multiple concurrent 20 year sentences, among other penalties. According to one analyst who studied the Rajneeshees carefully, the cult did not work its way up the ladder of violence to bioterrorism. Rather, the Rajneeshees appear to have abruptly embarked on their salmonella spree as a means to a specific end. 

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