Assad fires chemical weapons at rebels, opposition says

Syrian opposition sources said President Bashar Assad’s forces used chemical weapons overnight Sunday against rebels who surrounded an army base near Damascus.

Two fighters were reportedly killed and 23 wounded in the attack, which occurred in the town of Adra.

“Doctors are describing the chemical weapon used as phosphorus that hits the nervous system and causes imbalance and loss of consciousness,” said Mohammad al-Doumani, an activist.

“The two fighters were very close to where the rockets exploded and they died swiftly. The rest are being treated with Atropine,” he added.

There was no independent confirmation of the attack, but it comes on the heels of accusations from both the Assad camp and the rebels, each side claiming that the other has used chemical weapons. US officials voiced skepticism last week over the use of such weapons, and UN chief Ban Ki-moon promised an investigation into the allegations.

According to UN estimates, more than 70,000 people have died in the two-year-old civil war in Syria.