Erdogan meets Syrian who lost twin babies in chemical attack

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has met with Abdul Hameed al Yousef, a Syrian chemical attack survivor who lost his wife, 9 month-old twin babies and 13 members of his family in the attack.

Abdul Hameed al Yousef (R) lost 13 members of his family including his wife and twin 9-month-old babies in the Khan Shaykhun chemical attack.
TRT World and Agencies

Abdul Hameed al Yousef (R) lost 13 members of his family including his wife and twin 9-month-old babies in the Khan Shaykhun chemical attack.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday met with Abdul Hameed al Yousef, a Syrian man who lost 13 members of his family including his wife and twin 9-month-old babies in the Khan Shaykhun chemical attack.

The attack, which was carried out by the Syrian regime, killed scores of people and injured many others on Tuesday.

The grief-stricken al Yousef made headlines after pictures of him holding the lifeless bodies of his twin babies made the rounds on social media.

TRT World and Agencies

Abdul Hameed al Yousef holds the lifeless bodies of his twin babies who died in the chemical attack in Syria's Khan Shaykhun.

Erdogan met with al Yousef during a visit to the Southern Turkish province of Hatay, a town on Turkey's border with Syria.

Al Yousef kissed Erdogan on the forehead as the president offered his condolences.

The man had also said that, "As Syrians, our brother Recep Erdogan is our only hope," as he made reference to the Turkish president's involvement in the Syrian civil war.

"My children were so beautiful, but they were not the first children who were killed in Syria. We will show all the world how patient we are. We are not the first or the last. The Syrian war will continue. Our children have been killed in our arms for six years. Nothing has been done."

Anadolu Agency

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) meets with Abdul Hameed al Yousef (R) in Hatay, Turkey on April 7, 2017.

Experts from the World Health Organisation (WHO), along with members of the the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, (OPCW) have been trying to ascertain what substance was used in the deadly chemical attack in Syria's Idlib province.

They arrived in Turkey several days ago and have been carrying out extensive tests on the bodies of some of the victims.

WHO said initial indications were that the nerve agent Sarin was used.

Family members of the victims are hoping for answers.

Some of the injured, most of them women and children, were brought to Turkey for treatment.

TRT World's Shamim Chowdhury reports from Hatay.

Route 6