Ukrainian southern port city is under chemical attack

The Azov Regiment, part of the Ukraine National Guard, reported on Monday evening that the southern port city of Mariupol is under chemical attack.

Russian troops use chemical weapons against the entrenched Ukrainian garrison in the southern port city of Mariupol.

According to Azov’s statement, an unidentified agent was delivered with an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle.

“The victims have respiratory failure, vestibule-atactic syndrome,” Azov said.

A local source reported that the Russian military used Nerve agent GB (Sarin) in Mariupol, though there has been no official confirmation.

Sarin (NATO designation GB [short for G-series, “B”]) is an organophosphate compound. It is a clear to amber liquid that is odorless and tasteless with an appearance similar to that of water.

Sarin is considered a weapon of mass destruction. Production and stockpiling of sarin was outlawed as of April 1997 by the Chemical Weapons Convention of 1993, and it is classified as a Schedule 1 substance.

Andriy Biletsky, leader of the National Corps, the Azov movement’s political wing, reportedly said that chemical weapons were dropped on the Azovstal Metallurgical factory, and three people were injured.

The Kyiv Independent, also reported that shortly beforehand Russian proxies called for using chemical weapons in Mariupol.

Spokesman for Russia’s proxies in Donetsk said on April 11 that it made no sense to storm the Ukrainian-controlled Azovstal plant in Mariupol and instead Russian “chemical forces” should “smoke (Ukrainians) out.”

There are 100,000 people still trapped in Mariupol, which is 90% destroyed after being pulverized by air and artillery strikes and is now surrounded by Russian forces.