The scene in Idlib, Syria, following Tuesday’s suspected gas attack. Credit: Twitter.

Syrian activists released images showing victims foaming at the mouth and almost-naked children writhing on the ground as rescue workers hosed them down. Footage released following the attack also showed the lifeless bodies of nearly a dozen children piled onto a wooden cart.

“When I saw pictures of babies suffocating from a chemical attack in Syria, I was shocked and outraged,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement Tuesday. “There’s no, none, no excuse whatsoever for the deliberate attacks on civilians and on children, especially with cruel and outlawed chemical weapons. I call on the international community to fulfill its obligation from 2013 to fully and finally remove these horrible weapons from Syria.”

The death toll following the suspected gas attack is expected to rise as more victims arrive for treatment. Unverified reports from Syrian opposition sources reported that at least 100 people were killed and close to 400 were wounded.

According to AFP, a hospital treating victims in Idlib was bombed just a few hours after the purported chemical weapons assault.

The Syrian government has repeatedly denied using chemical weapons. The latest incident came after the Israeli Air Force reportedly became increasingly active within Syria throughout March.

“The world cannot be silent in the face of the horrific massacre in Syria and allow this devastation to repeat itself,” Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon said Tuesday. “The U.N. must act immediately to put an end to the use of any chemical weapons and ensure their removal from Syrian territory. This is the U.N.’s true purpose and it must fulfill this fundamental responsibility.”

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: “When I saw pictures of babies suffocating from a chemical attack in Syria, I was shocked and outraged. There’s no, none, no excuse whatsoever for the deliberate attacks on civilians and on children, especially with cruel and outlawed chemical weapons. I call on the international community to fulfil its obligation from 2013 to fully and finally remove these horrible weapons from Syria.”

President Reuven Rivlin added: “The pictures we are seeing today from Syria and the reports of the massacre of children, of civilians, with chemical weapons, is a stain on all humanity. The international community in its entirety must come together to bring an end to this murderous madness, and ensure that such scenes will never be repeated anywhere.

I call on the leaders of the international community – and among them the leading powers – to act now, without delay, to stop these criminal, murderous acts taking place in Syria by the hand of the Assad regime, and to work urgently to remove all stockpiles of chemical weapons from Syrian territory.

We, as a people who survived the greatest of atrocities and rose from the ashes to be a strong and secure nation, we will do all we can to continue to aid the survivors of the horrors in Syria. We know all too well how dangerous silence can be, and we cannot remain mute.”

In Australia, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull commented: “The Australian Government condemns in the strongest possible terms the chemical weapons attack against civilians, including children, at Khan Sheikhoun in Idlib Province, Syria on 4 April 2017.

The use of chemical weapons is illegal and abhorrent.

While the full facts are still to be determined, if the Assad regime is responsible for this attack those who approved and deployed these weapons must be held accountable.

The use of chemical weapons is in violation of international law, including the Chemical Weapons Convention and UNSCR 2118. These abuses cannot continue to be committed with impunity.

We welcome and support the United Nations’ efforts to verify the details of this latest attack. There also needs to be an independent, international investigation into the incident.

Russia and Iran, as countries engaged in the Syrian conflict, should use their influence to pressure the Assad regime to cease illegal, chemical attacks against its own people. We call on Russia and Iran to take genuine steps to enforce a ceasefire in Syria.

The UN Security Council needs to address this situation as soon as possible. We call on the Council to take action in response to this attack.

The continuing deaths of civilians in the Syrian conflict is deplorable. Australia is addressing the conflict in Syria through our military and humanitarian efforts, and through our autonomous sanctions.

We call on all parties to reduce the violence and engage in UN‑brokered efforts to find a political solution to this terrible conflict.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop added: “The Australian Government condemns in the strongest possible terms the chemical weapons attack against civilians, including children, at Khan Sheikhoun in Idlib Province, Syria on 4 April 2017.

The use of chemical weapons is illegal and abhorrent.

While the full facts are still to be determined, if the Assad regime is responsible for this attack those who approved and deployed these weapons must be held accountable.

The use of chemical weapons is in violation of international law, including the Chemical Weapons Convention and UNSCR 2118. These abuses cannot continue to be committed with impunity.

We welcome and support the United Nations’ efforts to verify the details of this latest attack. There also needs to be an independent, international investigation into the incident.

Russia and Iran, as countries engaged in the Syrian conflict, should use their influence to pressure the Assad regime to cease illegal, chemical attacks against its own people. We call on Russia and Iran to take genuine steps to enforce a ceasefire in Syria.

The UN Security Council needs to address this situation as soon as possible. We call on the Council to take action in response to this attack.

The continuing deaths of civilians in the Syrian conflict is deplorable. Australia is addressing the conflict in Syria through our military and humanitarian efforts, and through our autonomous sanctions.

We call on all parties to reduce the violence and engage in UN‑brokered efforts to find a political solution to this terrible conflict.

Dr Dvir Abramovich, Chairman of the ADC, stated: “This sickening, heinous attack by the Syrian regime against its own people must compel the UN and the intentional community  to act immediately to put a halt to the ongoing barbarities. As Jews, we are particularly heartbroken by the images of vulnerable, defenceless innocents targeted for death by chemical weapons. During the Holocaust, the world stood by and failed to intervene,  and shirked its moral responsibility in genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda and Sudan to act.   The brutal and evil Syrian dictator, who for the last six years has slaughtered his own people, has to be put on trial for the crimes against humanity and be held accountable for the use of this horrendous weapon against men, women and children. We pray for the victims and those families who lost loved ones, and wish the injured a full and speedy recovery.”

Report from JNS.org and J-Wire Staff