Chlorine Attacks Resume in Iraq

Several people were killed and hundreds sickened Friday in Iraq by suicide bombings that dispersed the chemical chlorine, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, Feb. 22).

The attacks in the largely Sunni Anbar province follow four chlorine strikes in January and February.

A pickup truck carrying tanks of chlorine exploded at 4:11 p.m. Friday at a checkpoint near the province’s capital of Ramadi.  The attack injured one U.S. soldier and an Iraqi civilian, the U.S. military said.

At least six people were killed and dozens injured two hours later by the detonation of a dump truck in Amiriyah, according to Iraqi officials.  Up to 100 civilians displayed signs of chlorine exposure, including vomiting and minor skin and lung irritation.

“We started to smell nasty smells,” said taxi driver Ahmed Kuhdier.  “I saw people coming from the explosion site and they were coughing and having trouble breathing.”

The final attack of the day occurred at 7:13 p.m. in the Albu Issa tribal region near Fallujah, and was apparently aimed at a tribal sheik who opposes the terrorist organization al-Qaeda.  A dump truck carrying a 200-gallon tank of chlorine exploded, leaving roughly 250 civilians with symptoms of exposure to the chemical (Kim Gamel, Associated Press/Worcester Telegram & Gazette News, March 18).

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