A chemical attack by the Islamic State in Mosul over the weekend had no effect on U.S. forces or the Iraqi security forces who were targeted, a top general said Wednesday.
However, the military could not confirm reports that mustard agent was the chemical used by the group as it wages an increasingly vicious fight for the western section of the city, said Army Maj. Gen. Joseph Martin, commander of the Combined Joint Forces Land Component Command for the campaign in Iraq.
The Islamic State “has used chemicals in the vicinity of Mosul but the chemicals have had no impact on the Iraqi security forces. It had no impact on our forces,” said Martin, who was speaking to Pentagon reporters from Iraq.
U.S. and Australian advisers might have been with the Iraqi security forces when they were hit with what appears to be the second chemical attack in recent days, according to multiple media reports.
The coalition has been fighting for six months to dislodge the Islamic State from Mosul, its stronghold in the country since 2014, and has cleared all but the western section of the city, where the extremists are waging a ruthless campaign, including indiscriminate shelling of liberated areas as well as the use of human shields and chemical weapons.
Six Iraqis had breathing problems following the attack Sunday and about 25 were treated, the Associated Press and CBS News reported.
“I’m not going to get into the exact number of Iraqi security forces that were involved, but what I will tell you is that they were all treated and they were all taken to the appropriate level of care to make sure that they were all right,” Martin said.
The U.S. military is still not certain what the chemical substance was, but the Islamic State has relied on crude chemical weapons such as mustard agent because they are easier to produce.
“We have sent it back for testing but we are still waiting for the outcomes of [that testing] based on my understanding,” Martin said.
Despite repeated questions, he declined to say whether U.S. personnel were with the Iraqi forces at the time of the attack or whether they donned special gear to protect against chemical weapons.
“All the forces that we have forward are there with the appropriate equipment they’ve been training on how to use that equipment and they’ve been trained to help the Iraqis if the Iraqis ever run into another instance where Daesh [ISIS] decides to use chemicals,” he said, using an alternate name for the Islamic State.
