Russia, US disagree on Syria gas attack perpetrator

WASHINGTON, United States (Kurdistan24) – Russia and the United States argued on Wednesday regarding the group responsible for the deadly gas attack in the Idlib Province of Syria on Tuesday.

The gas attacks were launched on the Khan Shaykun town in southern Idlib, leaving over 70 people dead and 200 more injured.

Russia blamed rebel fighters for the fatal attack while the US maintained Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was responsible.

“It’s necessary to demand that the rebels offer full access to study the area and collect necessary information,” said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump pointed to Assad’s regime as perpetrators of the crime, calling the assault “reprehensible.”

“These heinous actions by the [Assad] regime are a consequence of the past administration’s weakness and irresolution,” Trump said.

In 2016, a UN investigation panel determined chemical weapons were used by Syrian regime forces and opposition fighters in 2014 and 2015.

However, no steps were taken to hold any of the parties accountable.

Extreme exposure to chlorine gas can be devastating as it causes severe fluid buildup in the lungs, leaving the elderly and children most vulnerable.

Moreover, use of the chemical gas is widely condemned and considered a war crime under international law.

The conflict in Syria began in 2011 after the opposition group voiced their concern against the continued rule of the Assad family.

The Syrian regime, under the leadership of President Assad, responded with military force plunging the country into six years of civil war with millions killed or displaced.

Editing by Ava Homa