Syria victims show signs of exposure to ‘nerve agent’: WHO

Updated - January 15, 2018 at 01:37 PM.

The UN health agency said yesterday’s, which killed at least 72 civilians, appeared to have involved chemical weapons

A man removes rubble at a damaged site after airstrikes in the rebel held besieged Douma neighborhood of Damascus, Syria.

Some victims of a suspected chemical attack in Syria have symptoms consistent with exposure to a category of chemicals that includes nerve agents, the World Health Organization (WHO) said today.

The UN health agency said the attack in Idlib province yesterday, which killed at least 72 civilians, appeared to have involved chemical weapons, pointing to the “apparent lack of external injuries reported in cases showing a rapid onset of similar symptoms, including acute respiratory distress as the main cause of death.”

“Some cases appear to show additional signs consistent with exposure to organophosphorus chemicals, a category of chemicals that includes nerve agents,” it said.

Published on April 5, 2017 11:35