Report on the Recent Chemical Attack in Syria

April 5, 2017

Khan Sheikhoun, in the province of Idlib, has witnessed one of the most heinous war crimes of the Syrian crises This report, based on eyewitness documentation from sources on the ground, describes the chemical attack.

Khan Sheikhoun is located in the far south of the province of Idlib, almost 40 km from the city of Hama. The population of Khan Sheikhoun is roughly 63,000 in addition to 12,450 displaced persons who fled from the countryside of Hama and Homs.

After the Free Syrian Army (FSA) forced Louaa al- Aqsa (Jond al-Aqsa) to leave the city of Khan Sheikhoun, the city was no longer home to any military headquarters, especially following fierce battles with FSA  factions and Islamic factions on the 20^th of February 2017.

Khan Sheikhoun is far from the main battles sites of the conflict; the closest active battle between opposition armed groups and the Syrian regime is 25 km away in Mahreda, and 27 km from the town of Maerdas.

At roughly 6:30 AM Syrian time on one recent day in April 2017 a military air craft (a Russian-made Sukhoi air craft) raided the town of Khan Sheikhoun. It was found that some of the rockets that hit the city were loaded with poisonous substances that are internationally prohibited.

Witnesses claim that the rockets were loaded with sarin gas based on the symptoms it caused, including generalized and extensive spasms in the respiratory tract, paleness, and narrowing of the dorsal rings. The incident led to the occurrence of roughly 100 civilian casualties and the injury of nearly 300 others, mostly children. The cause of injury and death was the inhalation of poison gas, according to the testimony of medical staff and human rights organizations working to document cases.

The injured were sent to the existing medical centers and clinics near the area to receive first aid. Due to the fact that hospitals in the area have been hit by shelling during the recent period there are few and far between. The last hospital hit was Maarat Al-Numan Central Hospital. The critical cases which needed intubation were transferred to Turkey due to the large number of injuries as well as the fact that there is no longer any intensive care department in any of the northern Syrian hospitals.

Most of the medical centers and clinics lack equipment and supplies for dealing with injuries resulting from toxic gases – for example, water tanks, oxygen isolation tents (in sufficient quantities), atropine and peraloxime.

Until the writing of this report many of the victims have not been documented due to the large number of displaced people in the area and the death of entire families in the attack; in many cases there is no one who is able to identify the bodies. In addition, clinics and hospitals in many cases have no way to contact next-of-kin for those victims who were sent alone for medical care far away.

to download the report as PDF from here