Almost 1,500 killed in chemical weapons attacks in Syria

chemical weapons attacks in Syria during the five-year conflict, according to a report

Nearly 1,500 people have been killed in chemical weapons attacks in Syria during the five-year conflict, according to a report that highlights the uninhibited ferocity of the conflict.

The vast majority of the documented attacks and the ensuing civilian casualties were perpetrated by the government of Bashar al-Assad, it says.

“In response to chemical attacks in Syria, the international community sends us more antidotes,” Mohammed Tennari, is quoted as saying in the report. “This means that the world knows that chemical weapons will be used against us again and again.

“What we need most is not antidotes – what we need is protection, and to prevent another family from slowly suffocating together after being gassed in their home,” he added.

“Chemical attacks are used strategically to cause civilian displacement in Syria,” the report says. “The fear caused by these silent and unpredictable weapons causes civilians to flee in larger numbers than in the aftermath of conventional attacks.”