Chemical weaponsAssad's forces use sarin gas for first time since 2013 killing of 1,400 civilians

Published 18 May 2016

The Assad regime has used sarin gas for the first time since 2013, dropping a sarin-filled bombs on ISIS fighters outside Damascus, a senior Israeli official has said. On 21 August 2013 the Syrian military used sarin and VX to kill 1,400 Sunni civilians in a rebel-held suburb of Damascus. In the wake of the attack, Russia and the United States pressured Assad to give up his chemical weapons arsenal and dismantle Syria’s chemical weapons manufacturing capabilities. Western intelligence services say that Assad likely disposed of his mustard and VX, in accordance with the deal, but that he chose to keep the sarin, the most lethal agent at his disposal.

The Assad regime has used sarin gas for the first time since 2013, dropping a sarin-filled bombs on ISIS fighters outside Damascus, a senior Israeli official has said.

On 21 August 2013 the Syrian military used sarin and VX to kill 1,400 Sunni civilians in a rebel-held suburb of Damascus. In the wake of the attack — the last of numerous, smaller sarin attacks by the Syrian military against Sunni civilians — Russia and the United States pressured Assad to give up his chemical weapons arsenal and dismantle Syria’s chemical weapons manufacturing capabilities.

Western intelligence services have maintained all along that despite Assad’s disarmament pledge, the Syrian regime has stashed away large quantities of sarin, and that the latest attack showed that the Assad regime has retained the ability to use the agent.

The Telegraph reports that since June 2014, when Syria’s chemical weapons arsenal and manufacturing capability were supposed to have been completely dismantled, Assad’s forces have used relatively unsophisticated chlorine gas on several dozen occasions. The regime refrained, however, from employing sarin until the latest incident.  

Israeli officials said that the Syrian air force dropped the bombs filled with sarin just over three weeks ago, aiming to prevent ISIS from seizing two airbases located north-east of Damascus.

Scores of ISIS fighters were killed, but the exact number is uncertain.

An Israeli official told the Telegraph that Assad had concealed a significant proportion of his chemical arsenal. In particular, he kept some of his sarin gas.  

“They deceived and they still have it [sarin],” said the official. “Recently, they have decided to use it again. Once a taboo is broken, it becomes a standard weapon that you use. There are no red lines and it [sarin] becomes a standard kind of weapon.”  

Syria’s chemical arsenal, the world’s largest, included 1,300 tons of mustard, VX, and sarin gas. Israel believes that Assad likely disposed of his mustard and VX, in accordance with the deal, but that he chose to keep the sarin, the most lethal agent at his disposal.

Syria’s chemical disarmament was supervised by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). Even before the latest report of Assad’s use of sarin, Ahmet Uzumcu, the OPCW’s director general, had questioned whether Syria was genuinely disarmed in full. “We are not yet there,” he said on at the beginning of the month.

There are still questions. I am not able to say whether Syria has declared everything or whether Syria continues to possess some chemical weapons or some munitions. I hope that we will be able to clarify the remaining questions.”