Important evidence of the Japanese army's chemical warfare during the invasion of China is released

The Exhibition Hall of Crimes Evidence of the Japanese Invading Army Unit 731 recently made public the "Shanggao Book of the Kwantung Army Chemical Department," providing new and important archival evidence for the study of the Japanese invading army's chemical warfare. Relevant materials show that the Kwantung Army Chemical Department was also known as the "Manchukuo Unit 516." It was established in 1939 in Qiqihar, Heilongjiang, and was mainly responsible for the development and use of Japanese chemical weapons. This archive is a personal identity registration form filled out by members of the unit when they returned to Japan after the war. It consists of 148 pages and records information on 108 people, including their names, places of origin, branch of service, unit affiliation, time and place of disarmament, and postwar experiences. Researchers introduced that this batch of materials was collected and brought back to China from Japan in 2023, and was officially made public after being organized. The museum said that the archive repeatedly mentions terms such as "Kwantung Army Chemical Department" and "Manchukuo Unit 516," and clearly points to station locations such as Qiqihar, which can help further reconstruct the unit's organizational structure, personnel movement, and postwar whereabouts. Researchers believe that this batch of historical materials is of great significance for revealing the historical facts of chemical warfare carried out by Japan during its invasion of China.