The Pentagon warned Russia on Tuesday against interfering with the site of an alleged chemical weapons attack in Syria's regime-held city of Aleppo.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime has accused armed groups of carrying out a "toxic gas" attack Saturday that left dozens of people struggling to breathe and prompted government ally Russia to launch retaliatory air strikes against "terrorist groups."

Damascus has formally asked for the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to investigate the alleged attack.

The Pentagon said Assad may try to interfere with the site of the incident and build a narrative to justify attacking the rebel-held stronghold of Idlib, which is currently protected under a 10-week-old truce deal in northern Syria.

"It is essential to ensure that the Syrian regime does not seize on false pretexts to undermine this ceasefire and launch an offensive in Idlib," Pentagon spokesman Commander Sean Robertson said in a statement.

"We caution Russia against tampering with another suspected chemical weapons attack site and urge Russia to secure the safety of the OPCW inspectors so these allegations can be investigated in a fair and transparent manner."

Both the Syrian regime and Russia have blamed "terrorist groups" -- a term Damascus uses to mean both rebels and jihadists -- for Saturday's attack.

Though it is the regime that has been blamed for most deadly chemical weapon attacks in Syria's seven-year war, official media have recently accused fighters in Idlib of planning a chemical attack.

In April, the US, France and Britain launched joint missile strikes on Syrian targets in response to an alleged chemical weapons attack in the town of Douma that left scores of people dead.

The Syrian regime blocked international inspectors from accessing the site for several days after the alleged chemical attack.

"We urge immediate inspection of the alleged site by international investigators, with freedom to interview all involved and unhindered ability to collect evidence," Robertson said.

Related Links
The Long War - Doctrine and Application

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

Syria regime accuses armed groups of 'toxic gas' attack
Damascus (AFP) Nov 25, 2018
Syria's regime has accused armed groups of carrying out a "toxic gas" attack that left dozens of people struggling to breathe and prompted government ally Russia to launch retaliatory air strikes on Sunday. Around 100 Syrians were hospitalised with breathing difficulties after the alleged chemical attack in the regime-held city of Aleppo on Saturday, state media and a monitor said. Russia accused "terrorist groups" of being behind the alleged chlorine attack, and carried out the first air raids ... read more