Syria Accused of Using Deadly Chemcial Weapons
August 21, 2013
Syrian opposition activists have accused the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad of launching rockets with toxic chemical weapons into suburbs east of Damascus this morning as part of a major bombardment on rebel forces. The main opposition alliance claims that more than 1,000 people were killed in the attacks. Amateur videos downloaded onto the Internet show people going into convulsions. Dozens of bodies, including those of small children, are shown laid out on the floor of a clinic with no visible signs of injuries.
While the claims have not been independently confirmed, a doctor treating the injured did inform a BBC correspondent that the cause of death appears to be suffocation, with signs of foaming at the mouth. “There are some kinds of symptoms that tell us that this is phosphorus, which is a chemical weapon. It may be sarin, most probably it’s sarin,” noted the doctor, Ghazwan Bwidany.
A Syrian army spokesperson denied the accusations. He accused the opposition of inventing the story in an attempt to divert attention from the huge losses rebel forces had suffered recently.
A United Nations weapons inspector. (Reuters/Getty Images)
British Foreign Secretary William Hague and French President Francois Hollande have asked that United Nations (UN) weapons inspectors be allowed access to the area. Both Hague and Hollande stated that their respective UN ambassadors would raise the issue of chemical weapon use in the Syrian Civil War in the Security Council. The Security Council responded by scheduling an emergency meeting today.
Additional World Book articles:
- Syria: The Roots of Rebellion (a special report)
- The Middle East: From Fall to Spring (a special report)
- Syria 2011 (a Back in Time article)
- Syria 2012 (a Back in Time article)
