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IS fighters reportedly use chemical weapons to attack Iraqi town for second time

Islamic State fighters have used chemical weapons to attack an Iraqi town for the second time in ...
Newstalk
Newstalk

15.15 12 Mar 2016


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IS fighters reportedly use che...

IS fighters reportedly use chemical weapons to attack Iraqi town for second time

Newstalk
Newstalk

15.15 12 Mar 2016


Share this article


Islamic State fighters have used chemical weapons to attack an Iraqi town for the second time in four days, officials say.

Taza was hit early on Saturday following the first assault on Wednesday, in which three-year-old Fatima Wais was killed.

Around 600 people have been injured by chemical-carrying rockets and hundreds more have fled.

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An official spoke of fear and panic among women and children, and there are calls for the government to "save them".

The wounded suffered infected burns, suffocation and dehydration - eight have been transferred to Baghdad for more treatment, according to a nurse.

Earlier this week it was announced US special forces had captured the head of an IS unit that is developing chemical weapons.

The suspect, who has been named as Sleiman Daoud al-Afari, was thought to have been held in a raid in Tal Afar, northern Iraq last month.

He formerly worked on chemical and biological weapons programme for toppled Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.

Experts say the jihadist group's ability to launch a large-scale chemical weapons attack is currently limited.

The chemicals which IS has used so far include chlorine and a low-grade sulphur mustard which is not very potent, according to the US-led coalition.

"It's a legitimate threat. It's not a high threat. We're not, frankly, losing too much sleep over it," US Army Colonel Steve Warren told reporters.

The terror group is believed to have set up a special unit for researching chemical weapons, including Iraqi scientists who worked under Saddam as well as foreign experts.

IS is thought to have created limited amounts of mustard gas, and tests confirmed it was used in a Syrian town in August 2015.

There have been other unverified reports of IS using chemical agents on battlefields in Syria and Iraq.

The coalition began targeting IS' chemical weapons infrastructure with airstrikes and special operations raids two months ago.

Airstrikes are focusing on laboratories and equipment, and more special forces raids are targeting chemical weapons experts.


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