Last updated: December 29, 2014


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Syrian enemies trade blame over gas attack

A man with an oxygen mask at a hospital room north of Damascus, Syria

Both rebels and government forces in Syria have reported a poison gas attack in a central village. Source: AAP

BOTH sides in Syria's bloody conflict say a rural village has fallen victim to a poison gas attack.

What exactly happened on Friday in Kfar Zeita, a rebel-held village in Hama province about 200km north of Damascus, remains unclear and likely won't be known for some time.

It took United Nations weapons inspectors months to say it was likely some chemical weapons attacks happened last year, including an August attack that killed hundreds and nearly sparked US-led airstrikes against President Bashar al-Assad's forces.


They suggest an affliction by some kind of poison - and yet another clouded incident where both sides blame each other in a conflict that activists say has killed more than 150,000 people with no end in sight.


The opposition Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the gas attack happened during air raids that left heavy smoke over the area.


State-run Syrian television blamed members of the al-Nusra Front rebel group for the attack, saying they used chlorine gas to kill two people and injure more than 100.

It did not say how it confirmed chlorine was used.

Chlorine, one of the most commonly manufactured chemicals in the US, is used to purify drinking water.



The TV report also claimed the al-Nusra Front is preparing for another chemical attack against the Wadi Deif area in the northern province of Idlib, as well as another area in Hama.