Kurdish officials say ISIS used chemical weapons against Peshmerga fighters

Kurdish authorities told The Associated Press on Saturday that they have evidence that Islamic State militants used weaponized chlorine gas against Peshmerga fighters in a Jan. 23 suicide truck bomb attack.

The Kurdistan Region Security Council said in a statement that fighters found "around 20 gas canisters" at the scene of the attack in northern Iraq, and that an unnamed lab analyzed samples of clothing from the Peshmerga forces and found chlorine traces. Another official said that dozens of fighters were treated for "dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and general weakness." While ISIS has not responded to the allegations, it is not the first time officials have claimed that the group is using low-grade chemical weapons in attacks.

"The fact (that) ISIS relies on such tactics demonstrates it has lost the initiative and is resorting to desperate measures," the Kurdish government said in the statement.

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