Hezbollah fighters exposed to chemical agents in Syria: source

August 26, 2013 02:03 PM (Last updated: August 26, 2013 02:11 PM)

The Daily Star

Hezbollah fighters take positions as they pose for photographers in the Syrian border town of Zeita, 5 km from the Lebanese northeastern village of al-Qasr, Thursday, Feb. 21, 2013. (The Daily Star/Rakan al-Fakih)

BEIRUT: At least four Hezbollah fighters are receiving treatment in Beirut after coming into contact with chemical agents in Syria, a security source told The Daily Star Monday.

The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said between four and five members came into contact with the chemical agents while searching a group of rebel tunnels in the Damascus suburb of Jobar over the weekend.

On Saturday, Syrian state television said Syrian soldiers found chemical agents in Jobar and that some had suffocated while entering the tunnels.

The Hezbollah fighters were transported to Lebanon for treatment and are currently in a Beirut hospital in stable condition, the source said.

The source did not say what the chemical agent the fighters encountered was except that it was dispersed in the form of a gas.

U.N. inspectors are investigating claims of a chemical weapons attack in Eastern Ghota, outside the Syrian capital.