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Every year on August 21, Syrians remember two chemical attacks that took place in different regions of Syria: Ghouta in the Damascus countryside (southern Syria) and Marea in the Aleppo countryside (northern Syria).
One attack involved the use of sarin gas as a chemical weapon against civilians, while the other involved mustard gas. The time gap between these two chemical attacks in Syria was two years (2013 and 2015), yet both dates are united by the fact that Syrians were subjected to chemical gases used against them as weapons of war. Between 9 and 11 years have passed since these crimes, yet the perpetrators remain unpunished, despite the differences in the culprits and the types of gases used. What happened on this day?
The Ghouta Attack
On August 21, 2013, the Syrian regime used its chemical arsenal to bomb various areas in the countryside of the capital (in both Eastern and Western Ghouta) with shells containing sarin gas. The attack resulted in the death of 1,400 civilians, most of them women and children. Additionally, three hospitals in the Damascus countryside received approximately 3,600 patients suffering from symptoms of exposure to toxic chemical gases.
Opposition forces had controlled Ghouta since 2012, and in May 2013, regime forces besieged the area and deployed hundreds of military checkpoints along its borders, launching aerial and missile strikes targeting residential neighborhoods and vital facilities from that time on.
The chemical bombing in August 2013 and its aftermath were documented in about 100 videos that were shared on social media. These were obtained by the United Nations-affiliated Human Rights Watch team, who used them to investigate the type of gas used. The report indicated that the chemical attack involved the use of “sarin gas.”
The report, published in September 2013, concluded that “the August 21 attacks were likely carried out with chemical weapons using a 330 mm ground-to-ground missile system, and a 140 mm missile system from the Soviet era. The evidence suggests that the nerve gas used was likely sarin or a similar nerve agent.”
This report coincided with another issued by the UN Mission on “Allegations of Chemical Weapons Use,” which confirmed that civilians were targeted with ground-to-ground missiles loaded with sarin gas in Ain Tarma, Muadamiyat al-Sham, and Zamalka in Ghouta, Damascus.
What is Sarin Gas?
Sarin is a clear liquid with no color, taste, or (noticeable) odor. It can easily evaporate and turn into a vapor (gas). When it enters the body, it reacts with an enzyme that interacts with muscles, causing those exposed to the gas to feel fatigued and unable to continue breathing.
Sarin is an organophosphorus nerve agent that is extremely toxic. It was developed for use in chemical warfare during World War II and is still used as a weapon today, according to the National Toxicology Program (NTP).
The NTP is a joint interagency program run by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to coordinate, evaluate, and report on toxicology within public agencies.
The site confirms that exposure to sarin can lead to death or short-term health effects, including seizures, paralysis, and difficulty breathing within 24 hours of exposure. The long-term health effects of sarin exposure can be observed days, weeks, or years after exposure.
The Marea Attack
Coinciding with the second anniversary of the first chemical attack on civilians in Syria, the town of Marea in the northern countryside of Aleppo was targeted on August 21, 2015, resulting in the death of a child and the injury of other civilians from one family. It was later revealed that the attack involved mustard gas.
At the time, the Syrian American Medical Society confirmed that its field hospital in Marea treated more than 50 civilians who showed symptoms of exposure to chemical agents, with about 30 of them suffering from skin ulcers.
Marea was targeted on August 21, 2015, with dozens of mortar and artillery shells by ISIS militants, following a night of clashes with opposition factions on the Souran-Azaz axis north of the city. ISIS had besieged the city from 2013 to 2016, while battles for control of the city continued from 2014 onwards, noting that the organization’s reach in 2015 extended from the city of Ramadi in central Iraq to the city of Manbij in the western Aleppo countryside.
A few days later, the city suffered two additional attacks with sulfur mustard gas on September 1 and 3, resulting in the death of at least 20 people. The Identity and Investigation Team (IIT) of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) confirmed, after a lengthy investigation, that the perpetrator of the attack was ISIS.
What is Mustard Gas?
Mustard gas is a man-made chemical warfare agent. In its pure form, mustard gas is colorless and odorless, but when mixed with other chemicals, it takes on a yellow or Dark brown color and acquires a garlic-like odor. The body can absorb this substance through all possible means, such as inhalation, touch, or consumption of food or drink contaminated with the gas.
Sulfur mustard can exist as a vapor (gas), oily liquid, or solid. It is typically in liquid form at room temperature and usually solidifies when the temperature is below 58 degrees Fahrenheit (14.44 degrees Celsius).
Mustard gas has severe health and life-threatening effects. The World Health Organization has previously warned of the serious risks posed by this gas or the materials exposed to it.
Mustard gas is a strong irritant that causes inflammation, burns, and blisters on the skin, and damages the respiratory tract. Inhaling mustard gas causes coughing, lung inflammation, and irritation, and can result in a chronic respiratory disease that lasts for a long time and may lead to death, among other severe health effects.
Syria’s Chemical Arsenal and Its Withdrawal
The issue of Syria’s chemical weapons dates back to the 1970s when Damascus received them from Egypt. By the 1980s, Syria had begun local production.
According to the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, by 2006, Syria possessed:
– A 500-kilogram aerial bomb and chemical warheads for Scud-B missiles.
– Two chemical munitions depots in Khan Abu Shamat (in the Rahiba area of the Damascus countryside) and Furqlus, east of Homs, in central Syria.
Reports from Western intelligence, published by the BBC in 2017, confirmed that scientific research and studies centers in Jamraya, Barzeh, and Masyaf were involved in the production of “chemical weapons.”
There is also the Scientific Research Center in Barzeh, located in Damascus, which was established in the 1970s as a joint effort between the Syrian government and the French government research agency at the time. The Syrian regime claims that it is dedicated to “civilian research.”
In Masyaf, in the Hama countryside in central Syria, the Scientific Studies and Research Center was established in the 1970s under the supervision of experts from North Korea. It was later placed under the Ministry of Defense’s jurisdiction in 2010.
In 2008, a Scientific Studies and Research Center was established in Masyaf, which participated in the production of chemical weapons in collaboration with North Korean experts.
After the chemical weapon attack in the Damascus countryside in 2013 and the proven use of sarin gas as a weapon, the United Kingdom and the United States called for verification of the Syrian regime’s use of chemical weapons. This prompted the United Nations to threaten the regime and place its chemical arsenal under the control of the OPCW under Resolution 2118, leading to the destruction of the arsenal in October 2013 after Syria joined the Chemical Weapons Convention in September.
Eleven years after the first chemical attack in Syria, countries in the UN Security Council assessed in June 2024 the Syrian regime’s cooperation with the OPCW regarding the chemical weapons issue, according to UNSC Resolution 2118 of 2013.
The UN High Commissioner for Disarmament Affairs, Izumi Nakamitsu, stated that the Syrian regime was uncooperative with the OPCW. Several Security Council members expressed concern that “Syria’s declaration” under the Chemical Weapons Convention remains incomplete and stressed the need to hold those responsible for using chemical weapons in Syria accountable to prevent their future use.
Due to the chemical strikes on Ghouta in 2013, the Paris Court of Appeal on June 26, 2024, upheld the international arrest warrant issued by French investigative judges against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on charges of complicity in crimes against humanity.
French judicial authorities had issued arrest warrants against Bashar al-Assad and his brother Maher, the commander of the 4th Division, in November 2023, as well as Generals Ghassan Ibrahim and Bassam Hassan, on charges of complicity in attacks constituting war crimes and crimes against humanity.
This decision is the first of its kind, as it revoked Bashar al-Assad’s immunity and allowed for his prosecution for war crimes and the issuance of international arrest warrants against him.
Demands for Accountability
Despite the horrific massacres in Ghouta and Marea and the use of sarin and mustard gases (separately) on defenseless civilians, those responsible for these crimes have yet to be held accountable to this day (with arrest warrants issued against Bashar and Maher).
The Chemical Violations Documentation Center of Syria (CVDCS) reminds that the chemical attacks in Syria constitute a severe violation of UN Security Council resolutions, particularly Resolution 2118. This resolution is related to the Geneva Protocol signed on June 17, 1925, which prohibits the use of chemical weapons and considers them a serious threat to international peace and security.
The Center emphasizes that all chemical violations in Syria (numbering 262 attacks) contradict the principles outlined in the protocol prohibiting the military use of asphyxiating or toxic gases or similar bacteriological means of warfare, and blatantly disregard Resolution 2209, adopted in March 2015, which explicitly condemned the use of chemicals in warfare.
The Center stresses that a firm commitment to supporting international agreements, resolutions, and cooperative efforts is essential to achieving a safer and more secure world.
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