Chlorine attack reported in Syria after Russian warning

A suspected new chemical attack reportedly hit the Damascus suburb of Eastern Ghouta just after Russia warned that terrorists were planning a gas attack there to pin it on the Syrian government.

Militant sources were quoted as saying that several people suffered symptoms consistent with exposure to chlorine gas in the Shayfouniya area on Sunday, and one child was killed, Press TV wrote.

The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which is sympathetic to militants, said 14 civilians had suffered breathing difficulties after a Syrian warplane struck the village in the Eastern Ghouta region.

The London-based center quoted victims, ambulance drivers and others as saying that they had smelt chlorine after “an enormous explosion” in the area.

“At least 18 victims were treated with oxygen nebulizing sessions,” Reuters quoted an unidentified militant source as saying.

The Syrian government has consistently denied using chemical weapons in the war that will soon enter its eighth year.

For years, foreign-backed terrorists have appeared to release chemical substances in the areas close to the site of government airstrikes and capture the aftermath on videos.

On Sunday, videos released by terrorists depicted a child’s corpse wrapped in a blue shroud, and several bare-chested men and young boys appearing to struggle for breath, with some holding nebulizers to their mouths and noses.

The suspected gas attack came just after the Russian Defense Ministry warned Sunday that terrorists were preparing to use toxic agents in Eastern Ghouta so they could later accuse Damascus of employing chemical weapons.