Syria marks 12 years since Assad regime's Ghouta chemical massacre

Syrians on Thursday marked the 12th anniversary of the Assad regime's chemical weapons attacks on the Ghouta area, which surrounds Damascus.

At around 2 am on 21 August 2013, Assad regime forces launched four attacks with deadly sarin gas against densely populated neighbourhoods in eastern Ghouta and the town of Moadamiyat al-Sham in western Ghouta. Both these areas were held by opposition forces.

According to the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR), at least 1,144 people were killed, among them 99 children and 194 women. An additional 5,935 people were injured, suffering respiratory distress and suffocation.

At 2 am on Thursday, mosques across the Syrian capital Damascus and surrounding Rif Dimashq province began broadcasting chants of Allahu Akbar (God is Great) to mark the anniversary and honour the memory of the victims, The New Arab’s affiliate Syria TV reported.

This was the first time people had been able to mark the anniversary in Damascus after the fall of the Assad regime last December.

According to the SNHR, at least 10 rockets armed with toxic gases, each with an estimated payload of 20 litres, were fired from specialised launch platforms during the attack in August 2013.

The SNHR noted that large quantities of sarin gas were used, demonstrating a deliberate intent to inflict mass casualties while residents slept.

The timing of the attack, between 2 am and 5 am, coincided with falling temperatures and still air, conditions that allowed the heavy gas to remain close to the ground and maximise fatalities.

The regime's siege of eastern and western Ghouta, in place since late 2012, further exacerbated the death toll. Restrictions on fuel, medical supplies, and life-saving equipment meant that victims could not be adequately treated.

According to SNHR, this single incident accounts for nearly 76 percent of all documented fatalities from chemical attacks carried out by the regime between December 2012 and May 2019, the date of the last verified chemical strike in Kabina, Latakia province.

SNHR has recorded a total of 222 chemical attacks in Syria between December 23, 2012, and August 20, 2024.

At least 98 percent of these , 217 in total , were carried out by the Assad regime, while the remainder were carried out by the Islamic State extremist group.

A total of 1,514 people, including 214 children and 262 women, were killed in the regime’s chemical attacks.