One dead from reported chlorine attack in Aleppo

An official in Syria’s rebel-held Aleppo says at least one person has died from a suspected chlorine attack reported a day earlier.

Mohammed Abu Jaafar, head of the local forensic department in rebel-held Aleppo, said Wednesday 29-year old Mohammed Afifa died overnight of heart failure and acute respiratory distress caused by inhalation of toxic gas.

Hamza al-Khatib, who heads an Aleppo medical center, said Afifa had been in intensive care following the suspected chlorine attack.

Activists and rescuers said at least 70 people were treated for breathing difficulties after government helicopters dropped the suspected chlorine cylinders on al-Sukkari neighborhood.

Accusations involving the use of chlorine and other poisonous gases are not uncommon in Syria’s civil war. The report could not be independently verified and it was not clear how it was determined that chlorine gas was released.

— AP