LONDON: The US, UK, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pope Francis condemned Saturday's chemical gas attack on Syria’s Douma, while Russia and the Syrian regime denied claims of chemical weapons use.
Rescue workers said dozens of civilians had been killed in the attack and at least 80 civilians have been killed since Friday after the regime launched fresh air raids on rebel-held areas of Eastern Ghouta, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor.
The head of the United Nations said on Sunday he was “particularly alarmed” by the alleged use of chemical weapons against civilians in Syria.
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres joined world leaders and global entities in voicing alarm and said in a statement that he was “deeply concerned” about renewed violence in the city of Douma, citing reports that sustained airstrikes and shelling had killed civilians, destroyed infrastructure and damaged health facilities.
“The secretary-general is particularly alarmed by allegations that chemical weapons have been used against civilian populations in Douma,” the statement said.
While noting that the United Nations was not in a position to verify such reports, Guterres said that any confirmed use of chemical weapons would be “abhorrent.”
He called on all parties to cease fighting and to provide “humanitarian access across Syria to all people in need.”
United States
US President Donald Trump said there will be a “big price to pay” after what he called a “mindless CHEMICAL attack” in Syria, allegedly involving chlorine gas.
Trump also called Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad an “animal.”
“President Putin, Russia and Iran are responsible for backing Animal Assad. Big price to pay,” Trump said in a pair of tweets which began with a discussion of the attack in Syria’s Eastern Ghouta, where rescue workers alleged that regime loyalists had used chlorine gas.
“Many dead, including women and children, in mindless CHEMICAL attack in Syria. Area of atrocity is in lockdown and encircled by Syrian Army, making it completely inaccessible to outside world,” the president said.
“Open area immediately for medical help and verification,” Trump said. “Another humanitarian disaster for no reason whatsoever. SICK!"
Trump also criticized his predecessor Barack Obama for not striking after warning that the use of chemical weapons in Syria was a “red line.”
“If President Obama had crossed his stated Red Line in The Sand, the Syrian disaster would have ended long ago! Animal Assad would have been history!” Trump said.
Meanwhile, US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a statement, “these reports, if confirmed, are horrifying and demand an immediate response by the international community.”
“The Assad regime and its backers must be held accountable and any further attacks prevented immediately,” she added, noting that “Russia, with its unwavering support for the regime, ultimately bears responsibility for these brutal attacks.”
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom called on the need to open an urgent international investigation into the chemical attack reports.
In a press statement issued by the UK Foreign Ministry, a spokesperson said that the Assad regime and his supporters must end the violence against innocent civilians.
“The reports that showed a large number of victims in the chemical attack in the city of Douma are disturbing and, if proved correct, will be further evidence of the brutality of the Assad regime and the disregard of its supporters of international laws,” the statement read.
France
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said reports of the chemical attack were extremely worrying and called for the United Nations Security Council to meet quickly to examine the situation.
Le Drian said France strongly condemned attacks and bombings by Syrian government forces in the last 24 hours in Douma, adding they were a “gross violation of international humanitarian law.”
France would work with allies to verify reports that chemical weapons were used, Le Drian said.
Referring to President Emmanuel Macron’s warning that France could strike unilaterally if there was a deadly chemical attack, Le Drian said that Paris would assume all its responsibilities in the fight against the proliferation of chemical weapons.
European Union
The European Union said the evidence points to the use of chemical weapons by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces against a besieged rebel-held town in Syria, calling for an international response.
"The evidence points towards yet another chemical attack by the regime," the EU said in a statement. "It is a matter of grave concern that chemical weapons continue to be used, especially on civilians. The European Union condemns in the strongest terms the use of chemical weapons and calls for an immediate response by the international community."
The bloc called on the UN Security Council to re-establish its checks to identify perpetrators of chemical attacks and on Russia and Iran to use their influence with Assad to prevent further attacks.
Turkey
Turkey strongly condemned what it said was a chemical weapons attack in Douma, saying there was a “strong suspicion” the Assad regime was responsible.
“We strongly condemn the attack and we have the strong suspicion it was carried out by the regime, whose record on the use of chemical weapons is known by the international community,” the Turkish foreign ministry said in a statement.
Turkey said that the incident showed that past UN Security Council resolutions on the use of chemical weapons in Syria were “once again” being ignored.
The foreign ministry called for an investigation by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and said it expected condemnation from the international community.
The foreign ministry statement did not explicitly refer to Russia and Iran, maintaining Turkey’s caution in not lashing out at its partners.
But it called on “the parties who have influence over the Syrian regime” to ensure that such attacks are halted and punished.
It noted that “in the past no measures have been taken against these attacks.”
Pope Francis
At the end of a Mass in St. Peter’s Square, the Pope said that, “there is no such thing as a good war and a bad war. Nothing, but nothing, can justify the use of such instruments of extermination on defenseless people and populations.”
He urged that “military and political leaders choose another path, that of negotiations, which is the only one that can bring about peace and not death and destruction.”
Moscow, Tehran, Damascus deny claims
Russia’s military is rejecting claims that Syrian government forces used chemical weapons in an attack on the rebel-held town of Douma.
Maj. Gen. Yuri Yevtushenko was quoted by Russian news agencies on Sunday as saying Russia was prepared to “promptly send Russian specialists in radiation, chemical and biological protection to Douma after its liberation from fighters to gather data that will confirm the fabricated nature of these statements.”
Yevtushenko said “a number of Western countries” are trying to prevent the resumption of an operation to remove Army of Islam fighters from Douma and “to this end they are using the West’s pet theme of the use of chemical weapons by Syrian forces.”
Iran also condemned the allegations as a “conspiracy” against its ally Assad and a pretext for military action.
“Such allegations and accusations by the Americans and certain Western countries signal a new conspiracy against the Syrian government and people, and a pretext for military action,” Iran’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
Tehran warned any military intervention would “certainly complicate the situation” in Syria and the wider region.
“With the Syrian army having the upper hand on the ground against the armed terrorists, it would not be rational for it to use chemical weapons,” the statement said.
Syria’s foreign ministry denounced accusations the government had deployed chemical weapons as an “unconvincing broken record.”
“Allegations of chemical use have become an unconvincing broken record, except for some countries that trade with the blood of civilians and support terrorism in Syria,” state news agency SANA quoted a ministry source as saying.
“Every time the Syrian Arab Army advances in the fight against terrorism, allegations of chemical use are used as an excuse to prolong the life of terrorists in Douma,” it said.
Douma is the last rebel-held town in Eastern Ghouta, once the opposition’s main bastion near Damascus but now battered by a seven-week regime assault.
The offensive has recaptured 95 percent of Ghouta, and the government announced on Sunday that it had reached a deal for rebels to be evacuated from their last holdout in Douma.
World condemns Assad regime’s chemical attacks on Douma, Moscow deny allegations
World condemns Assad regime’s chemical attacks on Douma, Moscow deny allegations
- Trump called Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad an 'animal'
- Turkey said there was a 'strong suspicion' the Syrian regime was responsible
UN migration agency appeals for $73 million in aid for Syria
- UN’s International Organization for Migration more than doubling an appeal launched last month for Syria
- The Geneva-based agency said it was working to reestablish its presence inside Syria
The United Nations’ International Organization for Migration said it was more than doubling an appeal launched last month for Syria, from $30 million to $73.2 million, with the aim of assisting 1.1 million people across Syria over the next six months.
“IOM is committed to helping the people of Syria at this historical moment as the nation recovers from nearly 14 years of conflict,” IOM chief Amy Pope said in a statement.
“IOM will bring our deep experience in humanitarian assistance and recovery to help vulnerable communities across the country as we work with all partners to help build a better future for Syria.”
The Geneva-based agency said it was working to reestablish its presence inside Syria, after exiting Damascus in 2020, building on its experience working there in the preceding two decades, as well as on its cross-border activities in the past decade to bring aid to northwest Syria.
It said it aimed “to provide immediate assistance to the most at-risk and vulnerable communities, including displaced and returning groups, across Syria.”
The requested funds, it added, would be used to provide essential relief items and cash, shelter, protection assistance, water, sanitation, hygiene and health services.
They would also go to providing recovery support to people on the move, including those displaced, or preparing to relocate.
The dramatic political upheaval in Syria after the sudden ousting last month of strongman Bashar Assad after decades of dictatorship has spurred large movements of people.
Half of Syria’s population were forced from their homes during nearly 14 years of civil war, with millions fleeing the country and millions more displaced internally.
The UN refugee agency has said it expects around one million people to return to the country in the first half of this year.
And by the end of 2024, the UN humanitarian agency had already recorded the returns of nearly 500,000 people who had been internally displaced inside Syria, IOM pointed out.
US, Arab mediators make some progress in Gaza peace talks, no deal yet, sources say
- Israeli strikes continue amid ongoing peace talks
- Hamas demands end to war for hostage release
CAIRO: US and Arab mediators have made some progress in their efforts to reach a ceasefire accord between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, but not enough to seal a deal, Palestinian sources close to the talks said on Thursday.
As talks continued in Qatar, the Israeli military carried out strikes across the enclave, killing at least 17 people, Palestinian medics said.
Qatar, the US and Egypt are making a major push to reach a deal to halt fighting in the 15-month conflict and free remaining hostages held by Islamist group Hamas before President Joe Biden leaves office.
President-elect Donald Trump has warned there will be “hell to pay,” if the hostages are not released by his inauguration on Jan. 20.
On Thursday, a Palestinian official close to the mediation effort said the absence of a deal so far did not mean the talks were going nowhere and said this was the most serious attempt so far to reach an accord.
“There are extensive negotiations, mediators and negotiators are talking about every word and every detail. There is a breakthrough when it comes narrowing old existing gaps but there is no deal yet,” he told Reuters, without giving further details.
On Tuesday, Israeli Foreign Ministry Director General Eden Bar-Tal said Israel was fully committed to reaching an agreement to return its hostages from Gaza but faces obstruction from Hamas.
The two sides have been an at impasse for a year over two key issues. Hamas has said it will only free its remaining hostages if Israel agrees to end the war and withdraw all its troops from Gaza. Israel says it will not end the war until Hamas is dismantled and all hostages are free.
Severe humanitarian crisis
On Thursday, the death toll from Israel’s military strikes included eight Palestinians killed in a house in Jabalia, the largest of Gaza’s eight historic refugee camps, where Israeli forces have operated for more than three months. Nine others, including a father and his three children, died in two separate airstrikes on two houses in central Gaza Strip, health officials said.
There was no Israeli military comment on the two incidents.
More than 46,000 people have been killed in the Gaza war, according to Palestinian health officials. Much of the enclave has been laid waste and most of the territory’s 2.1 million people have been displaced multiple times and face acute shortages of food and medicine, humanitarian agencies say.
Israel denies hindering humanitarian relief to Gaza and says it has facilitated the distribution of hundreds of truckloads of food, water, medical supplies and shelter equipment to warehouses and shelters over the past week.
Israel launched its assault on Gaza after Hamas fighters stormed southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and capturing more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. On Wednesday, the Israeli military said troops had recovered the body of Israeli Bedouin hostage Youssef Al-Ziyadna, along with evidence that was still being examined suggesting his son Hamza, taken on the same day, may also be dead.
“We will continue to make every effort to return all of our hostages, the living and the deceased,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.
Lebanon’s parliament fails to elect new president; Aoun falls 15 votes short of required 86 in first round
- Lebanese army commander Joseph Aoun is the leading candidate
- He is widely seen as the preferred candidate of the US and Saudi Arabia
BEIRUT: Lebanon’s parliament yet again failed to elect a president on Thursday, after 12 previous attempts to choose a successor to former President Michel Aoun, whose term ended in October 2022.
Lebanese army commander Joseph Aoun, the leading candidate, failed to muster enough support – getting only 71 votes or 15 short of the required 86 in the first round of voting.
He is widely seen as the preferred candidate of the United States and Saudi Arabia, whose assistance Lebanon will need as it seeks to rebuild after a 14-month conflict between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
Lebanon’s parliament speaker Nabih Berri adjourned the session for two hours of consultations, after a first round of voting failed to produce enough votes for Aoun.
Two political sources said Aoun was likely to cross the 86-vote threshold in a second session later in the day.
Hezbollah previously backed another candidate, Suleiman Frangieh, the leader of a small Christian party in northern Lebanon with close ties to former Syrian President Bashar Assad.
However, on Wednesday, Frangieh announced he had withdrawn from the race and endorsed Aoun, apparently clearing the way for the army chief.
Lebanon’s fractious sectarian power-sharing system is prone to deadlock, both for political and procedural reasons. The small, crisis-battered Mediterranean country has been through several extended presidential vacancies, with the longest lasting nearly 2 1/2 years between May 2014 and October 2016. It ended when former President Michel Aoun was elected.
As a sitting army commander, Joseph Aoun is technically barred from becoming president by Lebanon’s constitution. The ban has been waived before, but it means that Aoun faces additional procedural hurdles.
Under normal circumstances, a presidential candidate in Lebanon can be elected by a two-thirds majority of the 128-member house in the first round of voting, or by a simple majority in a subsequent round.
But because of the constitutional issues surrounding his election, Aoun would need a two-thirds majority even in the second round.
Other contenders include Jihad Azour, a former finance minister who is now the director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund; and Elias Al-Baysari, the acting head of Lebanon’s General Security agency.
The next head of state will face daunting challenges apart from implementing the ceasefire agreement that ended the Israel-Hezbollah war and seeking funds for reconstruction.
Lebanon is six years into an economic and financial crisis that decimated the country’s currency and wiped out the savings of many Lebanese. The cash-strapped state electricity company provides only a few hours of power a day.
The country’s leaders reached a preliminary agreement with the IMF for a bail-out package in 2022 but have made limited progress on reforms required to clinch the deal.
Turkiye to tell US that Syria needs to be rid of terrorists, Turkish source says
- Ankara has repeatedly demanded that its NATO ally Washington halt its support for the YPG
ANKARA: Turkish officials will tell US Under Secretary of State John Bass during talks in Ankara this week that Syria needs to be rid of terrorist groups to achieve stability and security, a Turkish Foreign Ministry source said on Thursday.
Bass’ visit comes amid repeated warnings from Turkiye that it could mount a cross-border military offensive into northeastern Syria against the Kurdish YPG militia if the group does not meet its demands.
The YPG spearheads the US-allied Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which played an important role in defeating Islamic State in Syria. Ankara views the group as terrorists and an extension of the Kurdish militants waging a decades-old insurgency against the Turkish state, and has said it must lay down its weapons and disband.
During his visit to Ankara on Thursday and Friday, Bass will hold talks with Turkiye’s deputy foreign ministers, the source said, adding the talks would focus on Syria.
Talks are expected to “focus on steps to establish stability and security in Syria and to support the establishment of an inclusive government,” the source said.
“Naturally, the Turkish side is expected to strongly repeat that, for this to happen, the country needs to be rid of terrorist elements,” the person said, adding the sides would also discuss expanding the US sanctions exemption to Syria for the country to rebuild.
Ankara has repeatedly demanded that its NATO ally Washington halt its support for the YPG. It has mounted several incursions against the group and controls swathes of territory in northern Syria.
Syria’s Kurdish factions have been on the back foot since the ousting of former President Bashar Assad, with the new administration being friendly to Turkiye.
37 killed in north Syria clashes between pro-Turkiye, Kurdish forces: monitor
- Latest reported fighting comes despite the US saying it was working to address Turkiye’s concerns in Syria
- Syria’s Kurds control much of the oil-rich northeast of the country, where they enjoy de facto autonomy
DAMASCUS: Battles between Turkish-backed groups, supported by air strikes, and Kurdish-led forces killed 37 people on Thursday in Syria’s northern Manbij region, a war monitor said.
The latest reported fighting comes despite the United States saying Wednesday that it was working to address Turkiye’s concerns in Syria to dissuade the NATO ally from escalating an offensive against Kurdish fighters.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor reported “fierce battles in the Manbij countryside... in the past hours between the (Kurdish-led) Syrian Democratic Forces and the (Turkish-backed) National Army factions... with Turkish air cover.”
“The attacks killed 37 people in a preliminary toll,” mostly Turkish-backed combatants, but also six SDF fighters and five civilians, said the British-based Observatory with a network of sources inside Syria.
The monitor said at least 322 people have been killed in fighting in the Manbij countryside since last month.
On Wednesday, Mazloum Abdi, who heads the US-backed SDF, said his group supported “the unity and integrity of Syrian territory.” In a written statement, he called on Syria’s new authorities “to intervene in order for there to be a ceasefire throughout Syria.”
Abdi’s comments followed what he called a “positive” meeting between Kurdish leaders and the Damascus authorities late last month.
Turkish-backed factions in northern Syria resumed their fight with the SDF at the same time as Islamist-led militants were launching an offensive on November 27 that overthrew Syrian president Bashar Assad just 11 days later.
The pro-Ankara groups succeeded in capturing Kurdish-held Manbij and Tal Rifaat in northern Aleppo province, despite US-led efforts to establish a truce in the Manbij area.
The fighting has continued since, with mounting casualties.
On Wednesday Washington’s Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Turkiye had “legitimate concerns” about Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants inside Syria and called for a resolution in the country that includes the departure of “foreign terrorist fighters.”
“That’s a process that’s going to take some time, and in the meantime, what is profoundly not in the interest of everything positive we see happening in Syria would be a conflict, and we’ll work very hard to make sure that that doesn’t happen,” Blinken told reporters in Paris.
Turkiye on Tuesday threatened a military operation against Kurdish forces in Syria unless they accepted Ankara’s conditions for a “bloodless” transition after Assad’s fall.
Syria’s Kurds control much of the oil-rich northeast of the country, where they enjoyed de facto autonomy during much of the civil war since 2011.
The US-backed SDF spearheaded the military campaign that ousted Daesh group militants from their last territory in Syria in 2019.
But Turkiye accuses the main component of the SDF, the People’s Protection Units (YPG), of being affiliated with the PKK, which has waged a four-decade insurgency against the Turkish state.
The PKK is considered a terrorist organization by Turkiye, the United States, the European Union and most of Turkiye’s Western allies.
Turkiye has mounted multiple operations against the SDF since 2016.
