BREAKING NEWS

Twelve treated for chemical weapons agents in Mosul since March 1, UN says

BAGHDAD, March 4 (Reuters) - Twelve people, including women and children, are being treated for possible exposure to chemical weapons agents in Mosul, where Islamic State is fighting off an offensive by US-backed Iraqi forces, the United Nations said on Saturday.
The UN's World Health Organization has activated with partners and local health authorities "an emergency response plan to safely treat men, women and children who may be exposed to the highly toxic chemical," the agency said in a statement.
It said all 12 patients had been received since March 1 for treatment which they are undergoing in Erbil, the capital of Iraq's Kurdish region, east of Mosul.
Four of them are showing "severe signs associated with exposure to a blister agent." The patients were exposed to the chemical agents in the eastern side of Mosul.