<p>At least 40 people were killed and at least 1,000 were suffocated</a> after a chemical attack on Douma, the last rebel-held area in Eastern Ghouta, the Syrian Civil Defense, also known as the White Helmets, reported on April 7.</p><p>Photos posted by the White Helmets on several of their social media channels showed dead bodies of men, women, and children in a dark room. The group said entire families had been suffocated in basements after bombs were dropped by Syrian aircraft.</p><p>Multiple videos shared by Douma Revolution</a>, a Douma-based Facebook account that shares news and videos about the war, showed similar scenes of dead bodies inside a building</a>, as well as footage of people being treated</a> for injuries caused by what the account also said were chemical weapons.</p><p>An unnamed Syrian official issued a statement through the state-run news agency SANA</a> that did not explicitly deny a chemical attack occurred, but that denied the allegation that Syrian forces were responsible. The source blamed the incident on Jaysh al-Islam, the militant rebel group currently fighting pro-regime forces over control of Douma, describing it as an “open and failed attempt to obstruct the army’s progress.”</p><p>A day beforehand, on April 6, Russia’s state-run news agency TASS</a> cited Major-General Yuri Yevtushenko, head of the Russian peace and reconciliation center in Syria, as claiming Jaysh al-Islam was planning to carry out false-flag chemical attacks against civilians in areas under their control. He reportedly said they would blame pro-government forces for the attack for propaganda purposes.</p><p>Following the attack on April 7, TASS published a report echoing SANA</a>. Credit: Syrian Civil Defence via Storyful</p><br />
