Mosul: An Iraqi military officer said that Islamic State militants have launched a gas attack in a newly-liberated area in western Mosul.
The officer with the anti-terrorism forces said saturday that the attack occurred the night before in the al-Abar neighbourhood, when ISIS fired a rocked loaded with chlorine.
He said that seven soldiers suffered breathing problems and were treated in a nearby field clinic.
The officer spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to release information.
US-backed Iraqi forces are currently battling ISIS militants in the more densely-populated western half of Mosul.
Iraqi officials say more than half of western Mosul has been retaken. The extremists were driven out of the eastern half of Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city, in January.
- IT