Syrian army denies using gas on rebels near Damascus

The Syrian army on Saturday denied using chlorine gas during battles in eastern Damascus.

The army said reports circulated about an attack with chlorine gas on the rebels in the Ayn Tarma neighbourhood in the eastern countryside of Damascus are mere lies, Xinhua news agency reported.

This comes as activists reported that 30 people suffered suffocation after a Syrian army chlorine gas attack in Ayn Tarma.

"These lies are fabricated by the terrorist groups to justify their losses," the army said, adding that such blatant lies are exposed and cannot be believed.

The army stressed that Syria has not used chemical weapons before and it is now in no possession of such materials.

The Syrian government has warned that the rebels are preparing to stage chemical attacks to frame the Syrian army.

The chemical weapons' file was stirred last April when the United States and rebels accused the Syrian army of using nerve agent sarin in an attack on Khan Sheikhoun in the northwestern province of Idlib.

The alleged attack prompted a missile attack by the US on a military base in central Syria.

Syria then denied the accusations made without investigations.