Politics
16:43, 14-Apr-2018
Britain, France: Use of chemical weapons not to be tolerated
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The coordinated military action by Britain, France and the United States in Syria has sent a "clear message" against the use of chemical weapons, which will not be tolerated by the international community, said British Prime Minister Theresa May on Saturday.
May argued that reliable intelligence showed that Syrian military officials have coordinated what appears to be the use of chlorine in Douma, near Damascus, last Saturday. The allied move was right and legal, she maintained.
"I believe that the action taken will have significantly degraded the Syrian regime's ability to use chemical weapons," she said. "While the full assessment of the strike is ongoing, we are confident of its success," she added.
May declined to say on Saturday whether Syrian President Bashar al-Assad should stay in power and said talks with allies would continue on finding a political solution to the civil war.
When asked if Syria's Assad could remain leader as long as he refrained from further use of chemical weapons, May said: "This was specifically about the use of chemical weapons."
"There is a wider question on the future political solution for Syria and that is a matter that we will continue to pursue in diplomatic and political channels with our international partners and allies," May said.
May has repeatedly said that the missile strike on Syria was not about "regime change."
May will update the parliament on Monday, amid questions over why she didn't seek parliamentary approval ahead of joining US President Donald Trump in the military reprisal.
French President Emmanuel Macron attends a meeting as part of the joint airstrike operation by the British, French and US militaries in this picture obtained on April 14, 2018 via social media. /Reuters Photo
French President Emmanuel Macron attends a meeting as part of the joint airstrike operation by the British, French and US militaries in this picture obtained on April 14, 2018 via social media. /Reuters Photo
France also concluded after technical analysis of open sources and "reliable intelligence" that a chemical attack on Douma on April 7 was carried out by Syrian government forces, a declassified intelligence report showed on Saturday.
The report was released after coordinated strikes by Britain, France and the United States on Syrian government targets overnight.
The French military on Saturday fired 12 missiles during its air strikes on Syria, defense ministry officials said, adding there was no indication the missiles had been intercepted.
(Top image: A missile is seen crossing over Damascus, Syria April 14, 2018. /Reuters Photo)