One Building, One Bomb: How Assad Gassed His Own People
Source: The New York Times, By MALACHY BROWNE, CHRISTOPH KOETTL, ANJALI SINGHVI, NATALIE
RENEAU, BARBARA MARCOLINI, YOUSUR AL HLOU and DREW JORDAN
Syrian officials say there wasn’t a chemical attack. What really happened? This is an interactive report best viewed on The New York Times website.
On April 7, a chemical bomb was dropped onto the balcony of a multistory building in Douma, a neighborhood near Damascus, Syria. At least 34 people were killed.
The United States and its European allies blamed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and launched airstrikes to punish him.
Syrian officials still deny that bombing took place, and their Russian allies said that the attack was staged.
The investigation uncovered many pieces of evidence that contradict Mr. Assad and his allies.
The dents in the bomb’s nose, the lattice markings and the rigging that could be seen in the debris are evidence that the bomb was dropped from an aircraft. Because the Syrian military controls the airspace over Douma, it would be almost impossible for the attack to have been staged by opposition fighters who do not have aircraft.
The black corrosion is evidence supporting the charge that chlorine was used in the attack. The corrosion is similar to that which is caused when metal is exposed to chlorine and water.
Sources: The New York Times pored over dozens of videos and photos of the attack with academics, scientists and chemical weapons experts. We partnered with the research agency, Forensic Architecture, to create a virtual model of the crime scene and analyze how damage to the bomb’s casing related to the debris it scattered. We also scoured a portion of the visual evidence with the investigative group, Bellingcat.
Additional work by Larry Buchanan.