Islamic State used mustard gas against Kurdish peshmerga fighters

Citing senior U.S. officers, the Journal stated Islamic State might have obtained the mustard agent in Syria, whose authorities admitted to having giant portions of the blistering agent in 2013, when it agreed to surrender its chemical weapons arsenal.

Intelligence officials and chemical-weapons experts have expressed concerns in recent months that some of those banned chemicals could fall into the hands of Islamic State or other extremist groups.

The ISIS which is today the strongest terrorist group in the world had boasted about its capabilities. The weapon can cause burns and blisters, but is only deadly in large quantities.

In fact in the year 1993, it was due to the use of this gas in the civil war in Syria the chemical substance had been banned.

While there have been reports posted on social media about the incident, the officials told CNN they now have independent information that has led them to determine there was a use of chemical weapons.

August 14 Islamic State militants attacked the outskirts of Iraq’s northern oil refinery town of Baiji overnight with vehicle bombs and clashed with the army and Shi’ite militias in the town’s western districts, the local mayor and security sources said on Friday.

Inspectors, however, have subsequently said they weren’t able to verify claims by the Syrian government that it had burned hundreds of tons of mustard agent in earthen pits. They suggested rockets filled with chlorine gas were to blame and did not mention mustard gas. Most of the fighters reported injuries to their throats. The Islamic State may have got access to that bunker and located some intact supplies of mustard gas.

A person who is affected by the Mustard Gas does not show any symptoms upto 12 hours.

The attack in question took place late Wednesday, about 40 miles southwest of Erbil in northern Iraq. However in most cases reported, people have gone blind or developed chronic breathing problems.