Chemical warfare
Chlorine gas attack claims child victim in besieged rebel-held enclave of eastern Ghouta, Syria.
BEIRUT: A child died and at least 18 other people suffered breathing difficulties after a suspected chemical attack on a besieged Syrian rebel enclave, health authorities and a monitor said.
The Britain- based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said several civilians had suffered breathing difficulties after a regime warplane struck the village of al-Shifuniyah in the Eastern Ghouta region.
One child died and a woman was in a critical condition, said Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Observatory which relies on multiple sources on the ground in Syria for its reports.
Yaqub, a doctor who treated those affected, told AFP he suspected “chemical weapons, probably a chlorine gas attack”.
Victims, ambulance drivers and others smelt chlorine after “an enormous explosion”, said the statement issued by the local branch of the opposition Syrian Interim Government’s Ministry of Health.
“At least 18 victims were treated with oxygen nebulising sessions.”
The Syrian army could not immediately be reached for comment.
The Syrian government has con- sistently denied using chemical weapons in the war that will soon enter its eighth year.
The Russian defence ministry, which backs the Syrian government in the war, on Sunday accused rebels of preparing to use toxic agents in eastern Ghouta so they could later accuse Damascus of employing chemical weapons.
Video circulated on social media networks purporting to show the aftermath of the attack 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 nebulisers to their mouths and noses.
Eastern Ghouta, the last major rebel stronghold near Damascus, has been targeted in a fierce government offensive that got underway last week. — Agencies