The Suspicious Douma Chemical Attack

The Douma chlorine attack allegedly took place in the Suburb of Douma, Damascus on April 7th, 2018. While Western Governments seized on it and blamed the Syrian government immediately, there is some controversy about the attack. 

The attack allegedly came by helicopter, which dropped a chlorine cylinder on an apartment complex in Douma. However, the scene of this chorine cylinder does not make sense for many reasons. The trajectory of the bomb makes little sense, and it was almost intact after supposedly crashing through a concrete roof.

In video after video posted over the years by rebels, bombs dropped by the Mi-25 and Mi-8/17 helicopters fall straight down. It is important to keep this in mind. Below an Mi-25 drops bombs over Darayya in 2016.

Bombs falling straight down after being dropped from an Mi-25 helicopter over Darayya.

The chlorine bomb sitting on a bed after crashing through the roof.

The trajectory of the bomb makes little sense. It would have had to crash through the roof at a steep angle, which is incredibly unlikely given footage seen over the years of how these helicopter-dropped bombs fall. It looks like this bomb would have had to come in at about a 45 degree angle to land where it did.

The nose of the bomb was not damaged even slightly after allegedly crashing through the concrete roof at a high velocity. It should have at least been bent from this impact. It's interesting to note that the headboard wasn't even scratched in the photo below. We are to believe the bomb stopped millimeters from the headboard after crashing in at a 45 degree angle. 

How it came to rest on the bed without damaging the structure of it is also mysterious. This bomb would have been very heavy, and it would have been traveling very fast. The man wearing the mask in the photo below is doing it for propaganda reasons, as the bomb would not have been dangerous by this time.

The Syrian government would have had little motive for dropping this bomb, as Eastern Ghouta had been completely captured except for Douma, and rebels there were on the verge of defeat by conventional means. It is not unlikely, based on this evidence, that this was a staged scene in an attempt to spark international intervention to save the nearly defeated rebels.

There was also disagreement on the handling on the investigation by members of the OPCW itself. As many as four whistleblowers from within the organization have cast doubt on how the investigation was carried out. It was alleged that many details were falsified in order to justify intervention by NATO member nations.

A common theme in Syria seems to be that when rebels are losing, a chemical attack occurs. This makes no tactical sense for the Syrian government, who has won by conventional means and has everything to lose by using prohibited weapons. Ever since Iraqi WMD claims, the US and its allies will not be taken seriously about chemical weapons claims in the Middle East now or in the future.