>> it was a war known as an especially savage and unforgiving new way to kill. chemical weapons. one cruel legacy of world war i was the first widespread deployment of poison gas on the battlefield. a development that so shockingly continues today. >> in today's world it's unconscionable. >> he's chairman of the syrian counsel. he criticizes the world's acquiescent to bashar al-assad's repeated use of chemical weapons against his own people. >> i can imagine what it would do to someone hiding in their basement with their children in a dimly lit area waiting for a chemical weapon to rain down on them and suffocate them. >> it's a lesson not learned since 1918. on november 11 it's 100 years since the armistice. but the silencing of the gun did not mosul chemical weapon. >> countries can get away with it even though we know what they do. >> doctor timothy is a professor of history in parkville,