Alleged Chemical Attacks, March 25-April 3, 2017

A number of alleged chemical weapons attacks in Hama and Idlib provinces in the spring of 2017 describe a curious transitional phase between chemical strategies. The chlorine attacks reported for years here give way to the re-emergence of the deadlier sarin nerve agent. Used inter-mixed, allegedly inside the same munitions in some cases, and with the events often confused or little-known, this page seemed worth starting to sort them out.

For context, the first chemical attacks between late 2012 and August, 2013, alleged sarin nerve agent ... From mid-April, 2014 through early 2017, the allegations were almost entirely helicopter-launched chlorine attacks.

The Alleged Chemical Attack Khan Sheikhoun 4 April 2017 would seem to mark the re-emergence of sarin with close to 100 civilians killed by toxins all at once, for the first time in quite a while. but there were preludes, an emergent pattern of foreshadowing and confusing overlap, perhaps suggesting a plan to.

(as tallied at this Monitor blog post)

March 25, Latamnah
HRW heard 2+ bombs dropped from a helicopter around 3pm - one blew up 50m from the cave hospital entrance, and then the chlorine tank - somewhat implausibly - punched through the reinforced concrete roof of the dug-in hospital and filled the place with the familiar chlorine gas. There were two reported deaths, a doctor and a boy he was operating on - HRW and others add a first responder, for 3 killed.

some analysis here... Dr. Darwish didn't show chlorine signs.

In retrospect, it's interesting that the well-connected (to terrorist plots) Dr. Shajul Islam claimed this attack was by chlorine, and by sarin, in the same tweet. (via Qoppa999 shortcut)

UN CoI report, point 64: - chlorine, with usual cleaning products smell, barrel bomb, helicopter - no mention of sarin. The same from early Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS) report noting the loss of their Dr. Ali Darwish.

March 30, Latamnah
SAMS - barrel bombs are blamed (suggests helicopter). But: "these barrel bombs, in addition to containing the identifiable chlorine gas, were suspected to contain other toxic agents based on the symptoms: pinpoint pupils, convulsions..." (via Qoppa999) This is the bad claim I didn't attribute to Mahmoud. But the medical experts at Syrian American Medical Society showed their true colors and claim it: sarin-chlorine barrel bombs were dropped on farm workers.

The UN's CoI settles on a different version. point 69: an unidentified jet warplane dropped two bombs around 6:30 am - the first released a chemical with no particular smell, causing sarin-consistent symptoms and secondary contamination. The second caused a blast. Point 70 expands on this, concluding this was a sarin-type attack, not a chlorine type one. HRW findings same: there was a faint, non-described smell, and powerful effects more like sarin. Yet no one died, of a reported 169 who required medical treatment. NYP: "Latamineh — 15 miles from the rebel-held town — was hit March 30 by a missile filled with what appeared to be a chemical agent, causing about 70 people to experience spasms and foaming at the mouth." Missile means jet, not a helicopter. SNHR report: "[Al-Hasna] monitored the  warplane  with  the  symbol  Quds-6 taking off at a similar time before in late-March and targeting a hospital in Hama suburbs with poison gases at that time." That's a similar time to the 6:26 takeoff on April 4. A jet at dawn means this attack, not the hospital one, done in the afternoon with a helicopter.

April 3 PR Campaign Announcement
April 3 https://twitter.com/Qoppa999/status/913140960065880064 Still important in this context: the announcement by an OrientNews reporter, on April 3, of a "media campaign" about CW (chlorine)

April 3, Habit
Collected tweets about the bombing attack that "killed a lady" and injured many civilians. Photos and videos appear to be late afternoon into evening. Qoppa999
 * earliest tweet, 8:06 pm in Syria: (translated) "Bombard alhabet now with chlorine gas"
 * photo tweet, 11:03 PM, and later tweet, both explaining these are the children of martyrs Abdulrahman and Bara al-Dibous, two brothers diplaced from Latamnah, killed by the chlorine gas in Habit.
 * http://syriasolutions.com/?p=2105 Arabic article...
 * Witness in SNHR report on April 4 attack: “The symptoms  are  completely  different  from  the  ones  caused  by  the  chlorine  gas, which we bombed with multiple times before; most recently in al Habeit town 12 hours before this massacre"

April 4, Khan Sheikhoun
Launched by jets at 6:45 am, Initially reported by some as chlorine attack, medics claiming to smell chlorine, and witnesses describing a similar-color fog (though that was reported to have a different odor - foul, strange, disgusting). But the high death toll is inconsistent, and sarin emerged as the main poison, according to tested samples. The observed symptoms are a bit varied and unclear, and at least occasionally fake, but... neither sarin nor chlorine is well suggested. Victims "treated" mainly at a cave hospital, which was damaged (allegedly bombed) several hours later. A family hiding in a cave was found dead from the sarin on the following day. https://twitter.com/Qoppa999/status/913143187706916865 very interesting: Anas al-Diab posts on April 4 at 9:10 Syria time on FB about "toxic gas and chlorine". He was supposed to be busy then

Prelude in December?
Exisiting page, needs work and updating: Alleged Chemical Attack, December 12, 2016 Considered in context ...