IS attacks Syrian airport with mustard gas

Islamic State militants used mustard gas to attack Syrian soldiers at a military airport in Deir al-Zor province bordering Iraq.

An Islamic State militant. Photo: CBS News.

"Terrorists launched rockets containing mustard gas," Syrian state TV channel Ikhbariyah said in a statement late yesterday.

Syrian media did not disclose casualties in the Islamic State (IS) attack to seize the airport, which is well-defended, south of the city of Deir al-Zor, the provincial capital of the same name. Areas near the city are controlled by the rebel group.

Deir al-Zor has a strategic location. The province connects Raqqa, the IS stronghold in Syria, with the area they control in Iraq.

The IS-linked Amaq news agency earlier said the militants launched a large-scale attack on the village of Jufrah near the airport. Suicide bombers rammed vehicles into Syrian army defences, killing “dozens of people”. The Syrian army, backed by Russian airstrikes, pushed IS out of several villages near the airport in January but has not yet been able to completely dislodge them.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said fighting also broke out in several areas of Aleppo city, which is controlled by both the Syrian government and the rebels. Accordingly, the rebels shelled the positions of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) and the al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front launched a major attack on the government army in the Aleppo suburbs.

A ceasefire in Syria has been in effect since late February and has lasted for more than a month. The warring parties are trying to negotiate an end to the civil war. The ceasefire does not include IS and the Nusra Front. The Syrian army and its allies have continued airstrikes and ground attacks on areas where the two groups are present.

Location of Deir al-Zor city, Deir al-Zor province, Syria. Graphics: BBC.

According to VNE