Deadly chemical blast reported in Syria

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A Syrian military installation reportedly suffered a deadly explosion of chemical agents this summer.

Fifteen Syrian personnel and an unspecified number of visiting Iranian experts were killed in the July 25 blast in the facility near Aleppo, Jane’s Defense Weekly reported in its latest edition.

According to the respected British journal, which cited Syrian sources, the explosion happened during an attempt to mount a warhead filled with mustard gas onto a Scud-B missile. It was not clear if the incident was an accident or sabotage.

Syria’s alleged efforts to procure weapons of mass destruction have been under renewed foreign scrutiny following reports that Israeli warplanes struck a strategic military target in the country’s north on Sept. 6.

Israel is especially interested in monitoring any military cooperation between its arch-foe Iran and Syria.

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