The gruesome images are clear. There's little doubt Syrians suffered a
chemical attack. But videos of the aftermath don't show who was
responsible.
FULL STORY
A man mourns over the bodies of
those killed in a suspected chemical weapon attack in a suburb of
Damascus, Syria, on Wednesday, August 21. Syrian rebels said that
poisonous gas rained down from rockets overnight, but authorities have
denied the allegations that they used chemical weapons and accused the
opposition of staging the attacks. U.S. officials, however, said there
were "strong indications" that there was a chemical weapons attack by
the government.
(CNN) -- (CNN) -- Syrian President Bashar al-Assad
warned Monday in an interview with CBS that his country would lash out
in potentially unpredictable ways if struck over a chemical weapon
attack, saying the West does not have "a single shred of evidence" to
prove the claim his government was responsible.
Should Obama act without public support?
Rogers: 'We better have that discussion'
Refugees flood Lebanon border
Syrian civil war in photos
September 9, 2013 -- Updated 1505 GMT (2305 HKT)
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad took his case against a U.S. military
strike to the American people Monday, arguing in a CBS television
interview that such an attack would only benefit al Qaeda-linked
terrorists. FULL STORY
|
EVIDENCE BEYOND DOUBT?
|
POLL: MOST AMERICANS AGAINST STRIKE
Syria's al-Assad warns against strike; Kerry comment spurs Russian proposal
September 9, 2013 -- Updated 1640 GMT (0040 HKT)
A man mourns over the bodies of
those killed in a suspected chemical weapon attack in a suburb of
Damascus, Syria, on Wednesday, August 21. Syrian rebels said that
poisonous gas rained down from rockets overnight, but authorities have
denied the allegations that they used chemical weapons and accused the
opposition of staging the attacks. U.S. officials, however, said there
were "strong indications" that there was a chemical weapons attack by
the government.
HIDE CAPTION
Suspected chemical attack in Syria
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- NEW: Russia and Ban Ki-moon call for Syria to hand over chemical weapons
- NEW: Doing so could avert military strike on Syria, Russia's foreign minister says
- In a CBS interview, Syria's president says the West has no evidence to support a strike
- Kerry rejects doubts on Syrian intelligence and asks "What are we going to do about it?"
"You should expect
everything," he told interviewer Charlie Rose, sidestepping the question
of whether he would use chemical weapons against Western forces.
"That depends," he said. "If the rebels or the terrorists in this region or any other group have it, it could happen."
He denied responsibility
for a chemical weapons incident August 21 outside of Damascus that U.S.
officials say left more than 1,400 people dead.
Meanwhile, calls grew for Syria to give up its chemical weapons as a possible route to avoiding a Western military strike.
Russian Foreign Minister
Sergey Lavrov told reporters Monday that his country will urge Syria to
put its chemical weapons supply under international control if it doing
so would avert U.S. military action.
U.N. Secretary-General
Ban Ki-moon said he is also considering asking the Security Council to
demand the Syrian government immediately hand over its chemical weapons
to be destroyed.
Syrian Foreign Minister
Walid Moallem said his country "welcomes" Russia's proposal, but it was
not immediately clear if Syria would accept the plan, or if it would be
sufficient to end U.S. and French calls for a military strike punishing
the country for its alleged use of chemical weapons.
In proposing the plan,
Lavrov cited a statement by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry earlier
in the day in which the top American diplomat said al-Assad "could turn
over every single bit of his chemical weapons to the international
community in the next week. Turn it over, all of it, without delay, and
allow a full and total accounting for that."
Lavrov said Kerry's
remarks suggested "it's possible to avoid strikes if only Syria will put
it's all chemical weapons under to the world community's control."
But State Department
spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Kerry was "making a rhetorical argument about
the impossibility and unlikelihood of Assad turning over chemical
weapons he has denied he used."
"His point was that this
brutal dictator with a history of playing fast and loose with the facts
cannot be trusted to turn over chemical weapons otherwise he would have
done so long ago," Psaki said of Kerry.
Should Obama act without public support?
Rogers: 'We better have that discussion'
Refugees flood Lebanon border
Syrian civil war in photos
Kerry's boss, U.S.
President Barack Obama has been at the forefront of calls for a military
response to Syria's alleged use of chemical weapons.
French intelligence
believes al-Assad ordered the strike because he feared a major rebel
attack from the suburbs that could have endangered his control of
Damascus and the route leading to the city's airport, according to a
French Defense Ministry official who brief reporters on background
Monday.
A German newspaper,
however, reported Sunday that German intelligence intercepted
communications that indicate al-Assad had repeatedly denied his military
approval for chemical attacks.
Tepid support
In addition to Obama,
French President Francois Hollande also supports a military response but
widespread support elsewhere for an attack has been lacking.
British lawmakers voted
to preclude their military from participating in any strike, and polls
in France and the United States reveal little enthusiasm for military
action.
U.S. British and French
leaders have argued that failing to respond to such an attack, which
violates international conventions, would invite more use of chemical
weapons and weaken international resolve against the use of chemicals on
the battlefield.
"And the question for
all of us is, what are we going to do about it?" U.S. Secretary of State
John Kerry said Monday from London. "Turn our backs? Have a moment of
silence? Where a dictator can with impunity threaten the rest of the
world that he's going to retaliate for his own criminal activity because
he's being held accountable?"
"We live in a dangerous
world as it is, folks. And that kind of threat is nothing different from
the kind of threat we face every single day," he said. "And if we don't
stand up to it, we'll face it more, and they will think they can
intimidate anybody."
In the CBS interview,
al-Assad said members of Congress contemplating authorizing an attack on
Syria should realize it would only damage U.S. interests.
"So the question they
should ask themselves, what do wars give America? Nothing. No political
gain. No economic gain. No good reputation. The credibility is at an
all-time low. So this war is against the interests of the United
States," he told CBS.
"Why? This is the war
that's going to support al Qaeda and the same people that kill Americans
on the 11th of September," he said.
Ki-Moon said Monday that
if U.N. inspectors confirm the use of chemical weapons in Syria, it
would be an "abominable crime" worthy of international response. But he
has previously warned against "further militarization of the conflict"
in Syria.
Who ordered strike?
Syrian and Russian officials have blamed rebel forces for the August chemical attack.
On Sunday, the German
Bild am Sonntag newspaper reported that communications intercepted by
German intelligence aboard a ship off the Syrian coast suggest al-Assad
may not have approved chemical attacks.
Citing unidentified
high-level security sources, the newspaper said German intelligence had
intercepted communications indicating Syrian military commanders had
asked al-Assad for permission to use chemical weapons on nine separate
occasions.
He denied those requests, according to Bild am Sonntag.
The German intelligence service, BND, declined to comment when contacted Monday by CNN regarding the account.
Russians calls for talks
Earlier Monday, Lavrov
called for international talks in Moscow to avert a military strike and
end Syria's two-year-old conflict.
Speaking in Moscow
alongside his Syrian counterpart, Lavrov blamed U.S.-backed rebels in
Syria for preventing a peace conference in Geneva.
Kerry argued al-Assad won't negotiate without a strong international response.
"If one party believes
he can rub out countless numbers of his own citizens with impunity ...
he will never come to a negotiating table," Kerry said in London.
But Lavrov told
reporters in Moscow that Moallem, Syria's foreign minister, "said quite
clearly Damascus is ready to participate in a positive way" in
negotiations.
Lavrov said the Russian
government would work with other nations to promote negotiations, "and
if we can understand these contacts will help, then we can invite all
those interested in the world to Moscow."
Kerry: Strike or no, political solution required
Kerry rejected arguments
that rebels could have launched the August 21 attack, saying those
groups don't have the scientific or military capability to deliver such
weapons.
He also repeated American claims that the rockets used in the attack were launched from regime-controlled territory.
Despite the need for a
military response, Kerry said U.S. officials believe arms aren't the
answer to the Syrian conflict, which the United Nations estimates has
left more than 100,000 people dead.
Kerry said the United States still supports a future round of talks in Geneva.
"The end to the conflict in Syria requires a political solution." he said. "There is no military solution."
Top World Stories
- Iran denies reported plan to retaliate if U.S. strikes Syria
- Putin's man wins mayoral election, avoids run-off
- Prince mistaken for intruder at Buckingham Palace
- Pakistan's president steps down
- At least 20 hostages being held in Philippines
- Chinese journalist released after 8 years in prison
- Australian winner pledges 'competent, trustworthy' government
- Man castrates self after guru charged with raping girl
- Largest volcano on Earth found, scientists say
- copy http://edition.cnn.com
Nenhum comentário:
Postar um comentário