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Khan Shaykhun chemical attack

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2017 Khan Shaykhun chemical attack
Part of the Syrian Civil War
TypeAirstrike, chemical attack (alleged)
Location
Khan Shaykhun, Idlib Governorate (Syria)

35°26′20″N 36°39′4″E / 35.43889°N 36.65111°E / 35.43889; 36.65111
Date4 April 2017 (2017-04-04)
06:30 EEST[1] (UTC+03:00)
Executed byUnknown, one of the militarily engaging air-forces
Casualties58–100+[2] killed
300–400+[2] injured
Khan Shaykhun is located in Syria
Khan Shaykhun
Khan Shaykhun
Location of Khan Shaykhun within Syria

On 4 April 2017, the Tahrir al-Sham-controlled town of Khan Shaykhun,[3][4][5][6] in the Idlib Governorate of Syria, was struck by a heavy airstrike followed by a massive civilian chemical intoxication.[2] The release of the toxic gas, likely sarin, killed 58 people and injured more than 300, according to the Idlib health authority.[1] If confirmed, the attack would become the deadliest use of chemical weapons in the Syrian Civil War since the Ghouta chemical attack in 2013.[7]

Previous attack

On 30 March 2017, an airstrike hit the town of al-Lataminah in the northern Hama Governorate, around 15 kilometres (9 miles) from Khan Shaykhun. More than 70 people in the area were then exposed to an unidentified chemical agent and showed symptoms of nausea, agitation, foaming, muscle spasm, and miosis (constriction of the pupil of the eye). Cardiac arrest occurred in two of the victims[8] and an orthopedic doctor died.[9]

Attack

Location of the strike is marked by the hatched circle. Map shows frontlines at the time of the attack.

Chlorine usually kills just a few people, especially those in contained spaces and buildings. In contrast, in this attack, many people died outside. They were affected by pinpoint pupils indicative of nerve agents and other toxins.[10]

A few hours after the attack, a nearby clinic treating victims was hit by an airstrike. The area's largest hospital had been bombed two days prior.[10]

Responsibility

Syrian opposition claims

Medical sources in Idlib reported that more than 58 people, including 11 children, were killed and more than 300 were wounded. According to the Idlib Media Centre, the chemical agent had the characteristics of sarin. The National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces accused the Ba'athist Syrian government and the Syrian Armed Forces of carrying out the attack and called for an immediate investigation by the United Nations Security Council.[2]

Syrian government claims

On the day of the attack, a Syrian government official told Reuters that "the government does not and has not used chemical weapons, not in the past and not in the future."[11] The pro-government Al-Masdar News cited an army source as saying it had attacked a missile factory in the town using Sukhoi Su-22 bombs, which cannot be filled with any chemical substances, and did not know the factory contained chemicals[12], although Su-22s have been used for chemical bomb attacks in the past by the Iraqi Air Force.[13][14] The use of Sukhoi Su-22 in the attacks was also noted by pro-rebel sources (SOHR).[1] Later, the Russian Ministry of Defence supported the Syrian Armed Forces claim.[15] British chemical weapons expert, Col. Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, cast doubt on the Russian backed claim, saying "Axiomatically, if you blow up sarin you destroy it".[16]

International responses

Intergovernmental organizations

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said that he was "deeply disturbed" by reports of the Idlib chemical attack, noting that the use of chemical weapons is banned under international law.[17]

The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) expressed "serious concern" and said that its Fact-Finding Mission in Syria was "gathering and analysing information from all available sources."[18]

UN Security Council permanent members

France called for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council after the attack.[19][20] France, Britain, and the United States (who are among the permanent members of the Security Council), circulated a draft to the Council's 15 members condemning the attack in Syria and demanding a full investigation into it. The three nations are pressing for a vote during the emergency meeting set for on 5 April, but it was unclear whether Russia would support the resolution.[21][22]

French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault stated that the chemical attack was "particularly serious" and added: "I condemn this disgusting act."[19][20]

Matthew Rycroft, the British ambassador to the United Nations, stated: "This is clearly a war crime. I call on the Security Council members who have previously used their vetoes to defend the indefensible to change their course."[21] This was a reference to Russia and China, who in February 2017 used their vetos to block a Security Council resolution that would have imposed sanctions on Syrians accused of attacking villages with chlorine gas in 2014 and 2015.[21] The February vote was Russia's seventh veto shielding the Assad government from Security Council action.[22]

U.S. President Donald Trump called the attack "reprehensible" and attributed it to the Syrian government, saying the act could not be ignored "by the civilized world."[23] Trump also blamed the attack on the administration of his predecessor, Barack Obama.[23][24] U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said: “Anyone who uses chemical weapons to attack his own people shows a fundamental disregard for human decency and must be held accountable."[23][25]

The Russian government, which is involved in the Syrian Civil War, categorically denied involvement in the chemical attack; Russia's defence ministry issued a statement saying that the Russian Air Force had "not carried out any strikes near Khan Shaykhun of Idlib province."[26]

Others

Federica Mogherini, the European Union's diplomatic chief, called the attack "awful" and said that Bashar al-Assad's government bore "primary responsibility" for it.[27]

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said such inhumane attacks are unacceptable, according to a statement attributed to presidential sources.[28] Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu condemned the chemical attack by government forces.[29]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Francis, Ellen (4 April 2017). "Scores reported killed in gas attack on Syrian rebel area". Reuters. Beirut. Retrieved 4 April 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d "Syria conflict: 'Chemical attack' in Idlib kills dozens". BBC. 4 April 2017.
  3. ^ SOHRkhan (14 February 2017). "اشتباكات هيئة تحرير الشام وتنظيم جند الأقصى تخلف نحو 70 قتيل بين الطرفين… والأخير يخسر 9 بلدات وقرى خلال الـ 48 ساعة الفائتة". Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Retrieved 5 April 2017.
  4. ^ Charkatli, Izat (23 February 2017). "Over 2,000 radical rebels defect to ISIS following intra-rebel deal".
  5. ^ "Search for the dead begins in Idlib after Islamic State-linked brigade leaves for Raqqa". Syria Direct. 22 February 2017. Retrieved 5 April 2017.
  6. ^ Chris Tomson (16 February 2017). "Jund al-Aqsa completely besieged by rival rebel factions around two towns in Idlib". al-Masdar News.
  7. ^ "Syria 'toxic gas' attack kills 100 in Idlib province". Al-Arabiya & AFP. 4 April 2017.
  8. ^ "Breaking: Chemical Weapons Attack in Latamneh, Hama Injures 70". Union of Medical Care and Relief Organizations. 30 March 2017.
  9. ^ "Warplanes strike near Syria's Hama as army counter-attacks". Reuters. 30 March 2017. Speaking to Reuters from Turkey, Abdallah Darwish, head of the health authority for rebel-held parts of Hama province, said air strikes in the south of Latamneh on Thursday morning had injured many people. "The bombardment had a substance that caused intense irritation, heavy foaming from the mouth, and constricting pupils", said Darwish, citing his medical staff on the ground. A chemical attack hit the same area on Saturday, killing an orthopedic doctor, Darwish added.
  10. ^ a b Barnard, Anne and Gordon, Michael R. (4 April 2017). "Worst Chemical Attack in Years in Syria; U.S. Blames Assad". The New York Times. Retrieved 4 April 2017.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  11. ^ "Syria gas attack: Children among 58 reported killed in Idlib". Middle East Eye. 4 April 2017. On Tuesday, an unnamed official told the Reuters news agency that the government "does not and has not" used chemical weapons, "not in the past and not in the future".
  12. ^ "Details of Syrian military attack on southern Idlib town", by Leith Fadel, Al-Masdar News
  13. ^ http://www.newsmax.com/Pre-2008/Russia-Moved-Iraqi-WMD/2005/03/02/id/682271/
  14. ^ https://defence.pk/pdf/threads/iraqi-air-force-and-its-air-combat-against-mighty-allies.15483/
  15. ^ "Rebel warehouse with chem weapons hit by Syrian airstrike in Idlib – Russian MOD".
  16. ^ http://www.cnn.com/2017/04/05/middleeast/idlib-syria-attack/
  17. ^ Syria: UN chief 'deeply disturbed' by reports of alleged chemical attack; OPCW investigating, UN News Centre (4 April 2016).
  18. ^ OPCW Press Release on Allegations of Chemical Weapons Use in Southern Idlib, Syria, 4 April 2017.
  19. ^ a b France wants U.N. Security Council meeting after suspected Syria chemical attack, Reuters (4 April 2017).
  20. ^ a b Associated Press, France Seeks Emergency UN Meeting After Suspected Chemical Attack in Syria, Reuters (4 April 2017).
  21. ^ a b c Syria chemical attack: UK, France, US demand action, Agence France-Presse (5 April 2017).
  22. ^ a b Michelle Nichols, U.N. council to meet Wednesday on suspected Syria toxic gas attack, Reuters (4 April 2017).
  23. ^ a b c Alexander Smith, Syria Gas Attack Reportedly Kills Dozens in Idlib Province, NBC News (4 April 2017).
  24. ^ Andrew Rafferty & Stacey Klein, Trump Pins Blame for Syrian Attack on Obama Administration, NBC News (4 April 2017).
  25. ^ Chemical Weapons Attack in Syria (press release), United States Department of State (4 April 2017).
  26. ^ Chemical attack in Idlib draws international condemnation. TRT World. 4 April 2017.
  27. ^ "Assad regime responsible for 'awful' Syria 'chemical' attack: EU's Mogherini". Al Arabiya. 4 April 2017.
  28. ^ "Turkey condemns Syria's gas attack, urges Russia over Astana process". Ankara: Hurriyet Daily News. 4 April 2017.
  29. ^ "No Syrians will be left to decide Assad's fate if attacks continue, FM Çavuşoğlu says". Daily Sabah. 4 April 2017.
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