Horrifying pictures have emerged showing young victims of an alleged chemical attack on a rebel-held village in Syria.
A rescuer is shown cradling a little boy in his arms after the child was killed during airstrikes on al-Shifuniyah in Syria’s Eastern Ghouta.
Medics say the youngster was poisoned to death in a gas attack as dictator Bashar al-Assad’s forces continue their deadly assault on the region.
A rescuer is shown cradling a young boy in his arms after the child was killed during airstrikes on the rebel-held village of al-Shifuniyah in Syria’s Eastern Ghouta region. Medics say the youngster was poisoned to death in a gas attack
At least 13 people showed symptoms following intense regime bombardment, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and a medic who treated those affected.
The Syrian American Medical Society, which supports a hospital in the besieged area, posted pictures on Twitter of small children using breathing apparatus.
‘We confirm that 16 patients, including 6 children and 4 women, suffering from symptoms indicative to exposure to chemical compounds were treated’ at the facility, it said.
Russia, which has backed Assad since 2015, said on Sunday that militants in the area were preparing a ‘provocation’ involving the use of chemical agents. According to Tass, the militants were planning to blame the attack on the regime.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday the situation in Syria’s Eastern Ghouta was highly alarming and militants there were using local civilians as hostages.
‘The terrorists are not laying down their weapons, they are holding the local population as hostages, this is the main cause of a very tense situation,’ he told a conference call with reporters.