Current Event - Chemical Weapons in Syria A United Nations report released on Monday confirmed that deadly chemical weapons caused a mass killing in Syria. The attack happened last month in the city of Ein Tarma and Zamalka. Subsequently, over one thousand men, women and children lost their lives. Initial reports and video footage of the attack emerged from social media sources, making the claims difficult to verify. The apparent lack of concrete evidence caused many to reserve judgement on whether chemical weapons were actually used. But, a recent U.N. investigation provided an adequate amount of forensic details of the weapons used, which strongly implicated the Syrian government. The nerve agent Sarin was deployed via surface-to-surface rockets. Sarin is a clear, colorless and tasteless liquid that attacks the victim’s respiratory and nervous system. It is extremely lethal, and death usually occurs within an hour. Sarin’s vaporous form causes convulsions and respiratory failure, which is followed by death within an hour. Even when it does not kill, sarin's effects can cause permanent harm such as damage to the victim's lungs, eyes and central nervous system. Exposure can also occur if the skin is exposed to the agent in liquid form. An amount small enough to fit on a pinhead can prove fatal in under two minutes. Sarin was first produced by German scientists in 1938. The name sarin comes from the chemists who discovered it by unknowingly. Schrader, Ambros, Gerhard Ritter, and Van der Linde. The scientists had been trying to create stronger pesticides, but the formula was taken up by the Nazi military for chemical weapons. Although it was not used during the World War II, many have speculated that it could have given the Germans a strategic advantage. It is a member of the “organophosphate” family, which were previously used as pesticides. Sarin kills by crippling the respiratory center of the central nervous system and paralyzes the muscles around the lungs. The combination results in death by suffocation. Besides exposure through inhaling,
