ARCS condemns the use of chemical weapons in Khaldiya District

July 6, 2013 -- The American Relief Coalition for Syria (ARCS) strongly condemns the use of chemical weapons in Khalidiya district, Homs, and calls upon the US administration and the international community to act quickly to protect the Syrian people from further attacks whether with conventional or chemical weapons, and to prevent more devastation and suffering.

Doctors on the field described treating patients with respiratory, visual and neurological symptoms consistent with exposure to nerve gas. Patients responded to the medical antidote to nerve gas. Several videos of those affected by the attack support this assessment. Click here to see video.

Some patients also suffered from different skin burns.

Doctors and medics, who rushed to help, did not have protective gear or gas masks.

There have been more than 35 documented chemical weapons attacks in different areas in Syria since December 23, 2012 when the first was reported. It also took place in Khaldiya district. It is estimated that those attacks resulted in 150 deaths.

We urge the UN and the international community to investigate this new attack and intervene in order to protect the Syrian civilians and healthcare professionals from the use of weapons prohibited by international law. We urge our administration to move proactively to end the humanitarian crisis in Syria and provide much needed assistance to the population under siege in the old city of Homs including evacuation of the wounded and providing basic medical and humanitarian assistance.

ARCS, which was formed in early April of this year, is a group of 18 US-based relief and humanitarian organizations whose focus is to facilitate humanitarian assistance for Syria and respond to emergency situations.

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