A neighborhood in the Syrian city of Aleppo, which is held by Kurdish YPG militias, has been shelled with chemical agents from territory held by takfiri terrorists, a local journalist on the ground has said.
“The attack was carried out between 11.30 and 12.00 local time. The gas that was used in this attack, caused choking and malaise among those affected. This indicates that the poisoning substances were used in the attack,” journalist Nawrouz Uthman reports.
Uthman adds that 23 people were killed and over 100 injured in Thursday’s attack.
Video filmed by the journalist shows yellow gas rising over the Sheikh Maqsood neighborhood.
The Kurdish Red Cresent has confirmed the reports alleging that a chemical weapons attack took place.
Walaat Mamu, doctor at a local hospital, said that several victims came to the hospital with symptoms of suffocation after the shelling.
“The victims mostly come with symptoms of suffocation as a result of the shelling of the Sheikh Maksoud toxic gases. It is not established exactly which specific poisonous substance was used in the shelling. However, symptoms that the victims have been showing make it possible to ascertain that they were poisoned as a result of [inhaling] of banned toxic gasses,” the health worker said.
A video shot in the Sheikh Maqsood neighborhood shows several men experiencing difficulty breathing and a voice behind the camera saying there was a chemical attack in the area.
One of the victims described his physical state on camera.
“Suddenly I felt dizzy and unwell. I could not stand up. And now, I still feel bad, I can’t stand up or walk, my entire body is weakened.”
Kurdish journalist Kovan Direj reported that civilians and People's Protection Units (YPG) fighters had been exposed to yellow smoke. He said nine civilians were killed and 29 injured in the shelling.
Also on Thursday, at least two people lost their lives and nearly a dozen others sustained injuries as a result of militant attacks in Aleppo.
The development came only three days after al-Ikhbariyah Syria satellite television news network reported that Daesh terrorists had fired a barrage of rockets, carrying mustard gas, at a Syrian military airport in the eastern city of Dayr al-Zawr.
In August 2013, hundreds of people were killed in a chemical attack in the Ghouta suburb of Damascus. According to reports, the rockets used in the assault were handmade and contained sarin.
A report by the Syrian-American Medical Society said Daesh has carried out more than 160 attacks involving “poisonous or asphyxiating agents, such as sarin, chlorine, and mustard gas” since the beginning of the Syrian conflict in 2011. At least 1,491 people have been killed in the chemical attacks.
According to a February report by the Syrian Center for Policy Research, the conflict has claimed the lives of over 470,000 people, injured 1.9 million others, and displaced nearly half of the pre-war population of about 23 million within or beyond Syria’s borders.
Damascus accuses Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar of funding and arming anti-Syria terrorist groups, including Daesh.
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