An airstrike launched against the Syrian town of Khan Sheikhoun, in a rebel-held area of Idlib province, caused the death of scores of Syrians on Tuesday evening, local time. Witnesses on the ground say that the attack bears all the signs of chemical weapons use. Seventy-two people, including at least 20 children and 17 women, were killed in the attack, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said on Wednesday. US officials have placed the blame for the attack on the shoulders of President Bashar al-Assad's regime.
While atrocities have occurred within Syria with a devastating frequency over the course of the seven-year civil war, the most recent suspected chemical attack has drawn international attention for its severity. It would be the most people to have been killed by chemicals in Syria since a 2013 gas attack killed more than 1,000 people.
