On way to attack Syria : reports of casualties from gas in Damascus

On the way to an international assault on Syria, there are reports again of casualties from toxic gas as a result of chemical weapons this morning (Wednesday).

"Al - Jazeera" network reported, citing Syrian opposition, on 20 people affected by toxic gases in Jubara neighborhood, east of Damascus.

According to "Al Arabiya" the number of casualties stands at nine. In addition it was reported that an explosion occurred in the neighborhood of Al - Mohajiron in the Syrian capital. The explosion circumstances are unclear.

The magazine "Foreign Policy" reports that a few hours after the chemical attack in the east of Damascus, in which hundreds of civilians were killed, a senior official at the Ministry of Defense called the commander at the chemical weapons unit commander and asked for answers regarding the use of nerve gas. These urgent calls were monitored by the intelligence services of the United States, in which the senior in the Defense Department asked for details of the extent of use of chemical weapons.

According to "Foreign Policy" the American government is based on the conversations which intelligence system monitored and according to which it estimated that the Assad government is responsible for the attack. However it is not certain if the chemical attack was performed at the instruction of Assad's officials.

According to some unconfirmed reports, the Syrian president fled his country. According to some websites, there is a claim that Assad's plane landed at the airport in Tehran. There is no verification of these reports from any reliable source.

Assad reportedly landed unexpectedly in Tehran. Some reports claimed that the president is in the plane, with associates and family.

Sources close to Syrian President Bashar Assad continue to threaten Israel and said to the Kuwaiti newspaper "a - Rei" that " Iraqi Scud missiles during Saddam Hussein's time crossed thousands of kilometers to fall in Israel, while Syrian missiles are not far more than 50 km of the most sensitive sites in Israel. If Israel wants to respond to a Syrian attack, the regime in Damascus will go far because it has nothing to lose and will work on the basis that those drowning in water are not afraid to get wet. "

The factors added that "the Syrian military command post was instructed to prepare for an intensive response on the expected bombing attacks. The Yahonet and M- 600 missiles have already been deployed."

Midnight attack

Estimates are that the attack will begin late at night, will last three days and will be directed against dozens of military objectives.

An administration official told The New York Times that the attack will be directed at first stage at less than fifty military targets including bases of the Syrian Air Force, from which attack helicopters take off, as well as the Syrian army headquarters, command pits and bases of land army soldiers.

However he clarified that there is no intention to attack the bases of Syria's chemical weapons. "If we hit a bunker of chemical weapons, we will have unsecure chemical weapons," he explained.

U.S. Army has a bank of targets, which rests among others on a long list of sites, which the Syrian opposition and the Free Syrian Army wish to bomb .

The list includes the headquarters of the Fourth Division placed near Damascus, headquarters of the presidential guard, arsenals of chemical weapons and headquarters of the first and seventh divisions which govern the transition from Daraa to Damascus, along with military bases in Latkia, so that Free Army forces can take over both the coastal province and move relatively easily from the south to Damascus.

The opposition's aspiration is that the American attack will not make do with a surgical punitive action against the bases of chemical weapons but will give the Free Army a significant strategic advantage that could win the war.

'בחדרי' גם ברשתות החברתיות - הצטרפו!