New video emerges of chemical attack in Syria

By Dildar Baykan

EASTERN GHOUTA/ANKARA

New video footage has emerged of late Saturday's chemical attack in Syria’s Eastern Ghouta suburb that reveals the extent of the massacre.

According to the footage, most of the 78 civilians who lost their lives were foaming at the mouth and nose, while the majority of the dead were infants and children.

The video included a father wailing beside his dead daughter, saying, "Forgive me, my child. Wake up and let me see your face."

In another part, a father is standing by his dead son in tears, saying, "May Allah forgive you and rest your soul, Mohammed."

According to Syria Civil Defense, also known as the White Helmets, forces of the Bashar al-Assad regime struck targets in Douma, a district in Eastern Ghouta, in a midnight attack using poison gas. In all, the White Helmets counted more than 500 cases of chemical exposure, many of whom were women and children.

The Assad regime, which re-launched attacks in opposition-controlled Douma on Saturday, had previously struck the area with chemicals, including chlorine, on March 19.

The UK-based Syrian Network for Human Rights said in a recent report that the regime has launched 214 chemical attacks since the beginning of the civil war in 2011.

Earlier this month, a UN commission of inquiry released a report accusing the regime of committing war crimes in Eastern Ghouta, including the use of chemical weapons against civilians.

More than 100,000 people are living under a blockade in a roughly seven-square-kilometer area of Douma.