According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Russian military has found evidence of terrorists’ usage of chemical weapons in the area of the 1070 Apartments project in the south-western outskirts of Aleppo city.

Russian military found evidence of usage of chemical weapons by terrorists in the south-west part of the Syrian city of Aleppo, spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry, Major General Igor Konashenkov, said.

“During reconnaissance in the area of the 1070 Apartments project (the south-western outskirts of the city of Aleppo), officers of the Scientific Center of Troops of Radiation, Chemical and Biological Protection (NBC) found evidence of terrorists’ usage of chemical weapons against Syrian civilians and military personnel,” Konashenkov said.

According to the Major General, Russian military found terrorists’ unexploded artillery ammunition with chemical agents, and took soil samples at the site of their applying.

“After rapid testing in a mobile laboratory, it was found that toxic substances, with which militants’ artillery shells were filled, are most likely chlorine and white phosphorus,” the spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry noted.

Earlier, it was reported that a joint mission of the UN and the OPCW (the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons) on investigation of the use of chemical substances for military purposes in Syria recognized that the Syrian government was responsible for two of the nine chemical attacks that were studied, while terrorists of the Islamic State (IS) group were blamed for another attack.

In the last submitted report, the mission accused the Syrian authorities in another chemical attack.

Experts concluded that toxic gas was used in the province of Idlib on March 16, 2016.

As Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, Moscow considers the report of the OPCW on the use of chemical weapons in Syria helpful and is ready to assist in the investigation.

At the same time, Russia’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Vitaly Churkin, noted that there still are many questions on the submitted report, and it is not enough for introduction of the UN Security Council’s sanctions against Damascus.

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