A new class of bis(imidazol)vinyl-1,2,4-oxadiazoles were synthesised and their anti-proliferative efficiency was tested against HCT116 and A549 cancer cell lines.

In the title mol­ecule, C20H17Cl2NO2, the pyrrole moiety makes dihedral angles of 63.42 (11) and 70.43 (12)° with the chlorobenzene rings. The eth­oxy­carbonyl unit is present in a synperiplanar conformation with respect to the pyrrole ring, as indicated by the dihedral angle of 14.5 (3)°. In the crystal, mol­ecules are linked into chains parallel to the a-axis direction by weak C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds.

The title oxadiazoles are efficiently synthesized by a one‐pot reaction between N,N′‐carbonyldiimidazole, trifluoropropionic acid and various amidoximes.