© AP Photo/ Alex Brandon
The United States is aware that some kind of chemical was used in the alleged attack in the Syrian city of Douma, but is not sure at present what kind of substance it was, the US State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said during a press briefing on Tuesday.
"We do know that some sort of a substance was used," Nauert told reporters. "A chemical was used, we're just not sure at this point today exactly what was used."
Nauert explained the United States will rely on information collected by the
Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) regarding the alleged chemical attack, but said the US government also has
its own mechanisms to investigate the incident.
On Saturday, several media outlets, citing Syrian militants, accused the Syrian government of carrying out a chemical weapons attack in Duma, located some ten kilometers northeast of the capital Damascus.
Trump blamed Syrian President Bashar Assad for the incident, but said Russia and Iran were also responsible because they support the Syrian government. On Monday, Trump said his administration would make a major
decision within the next 24 to 48 hours on what the US response will be.
The Russian reconciliation center for Syria on Sunday categorically refuted the media reports that the Syrian military dropped a chlorine-filled bomb on Duma. The Russian Foreign Ministry said such erroneous information aims to cover the actions of terrorists and justify possible external military intervention in Syria.
Comment: Nauert is not doing blondes everywhere any favors. First, the U.S. government has no mechanisms, because it has no experts on the ground to conduct any kind of actual investigation. They cannot possibly know if the Syrian military was responsible, because they cannot even be sure that the event happened as described by the terrorist sources on which they're basing their conclusions. They cannot rule out a chemical of a type possessed by the terrorists who held Douma, assuming a chemical was even used. As such, they cannot possibly know beyond a reasonable doubt whether or not the Syrian government/military were responsible. This is just idiotic, but then again, it's the U.S. State Department.
Defense Secretary Mattis, who had the integrity to admit earlier this year that there was no evidence Assad used chemical weapons last year,
had this to say: "We're still assessing the intelligence - ourselves and our allies. We're still working on this." Hopefully his professionalism prevails.
Comment: Nauert is not doing blondes everywhere any favors. First, the U.S. government has no mechanisms, because it has no experts on the ground to conduct any kind of actual investigation. They cannot possibly know if the Syrian military was responsible, because they cannot even be sure that the event happened as described by the terrorist sources on which they're basing their conclusions. They cannot rule out a chemical of a type possessed by the terrorists who held Douma, assuming a chemical was even used. As such, they cannot possibly know beyond a reasonable doubt whether or not the Syrian government/military were responsible. This is just idiotic, but then again, it's the U.S. State Department.
Defense Secretary Mattis, who had the integrity to admit earlier this year that there was no evidence Assad used chemical weapons last year, had this to say: "We're still assessing the intelligence - ourselves and our allies. We're still working on this." Hopefully his professionalism prevails.