At dawn on Wednesday, Aug. 21, a new chapter was written in the annals of war. The army of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad shelled the Eastern Plateau — a populated area southeast of Damascus — to weaken the rebel hold on the region. Syrian artillery fired almost 30 mortar rounds to take out rebel positions. Doctors report that several types of gas were used in the attack, including sarin. The tally of the dead, according to the Syrian opposition, was some 1,800 civilians.

This was the most documented chemical attack in history on a civilian population. It was covered much more widely than the attack on the Kurds at Halabja in the final days of the Iran-Iraq war at the end of the 1980s. Less than an hour after it occurred, the first photographed evidence was already making its way around the world. One after the other, more and more horrific videos were published. Survivors described scenes of bodies lying in the streets and of the town of Zamalka, which lost at least 400 of its residents.

The sight of babies choking to death, or of children’s bodies lying still on the ground — arranged one after the other in preparation for burial — is not a common-day occurrence, not even in the context of the cruel Syrian war.

Countries around the world were shocked, but only for a brief moment. Russia, Damascus’ friend, outdid itself by casting doubt on the authenticity of the pictures. France hinted that it was time to take off the gloves and mount military action in Syria. Along with the British, Paris demanded an international inquiry.