At the end of the war on Iraq, the only document that proved truthful was the one presented by a terrified Saddam Hussein, in which he accounted for his weapons of mass destruction: Hussein had none. At the time, those who killed that country laughed at him, in anticipation of The Kill.
So when a weak leader stands up to the big bullies of the world and says he didn’t do it; it’s worth listening to Bashar-al Assad. (Those of us who hail from the Middle East and know the culture, appreciate how easily Arabs play the idiot superpowers, to get what they want from them.)
In any event, from the fact that Sarin was used in Syria it doesn’t follow that we know who used it: And how do you verify a video? There is certainly no reliable information shared about this attack other than iffy video footage.
Mr Assad accused the West of making up events in Khan Sheikhoun so it had an excuse to carry out missile strikes on the government’s Shayrat airbase, which took place a few days after the alleged attack.
“It’s stage one, the play [they staged] that we saw on social network and TVs, then propaganda and then stage two, the military attack,” he told the AFP, questioning the authenticity of the video footage.
Mr Assad also said the Syrian government had given up its chemical arsenal in 2013, adding “even if we have them, we wouldn’t use them”.
Since 2013, there have been continued allegations that chemicals such as chlorine and ammonia have been used against civilians, by both the Syrian government and rebel groups.
Turkey and the UK say tests show Sarin or a Sarin-like substance was used in Khan Sheikhoun, which would be the first time since 2013 that a prohibited chemical had been used on such a scale.
Doctor Sarin:
How 2 make America go 2 war 4 u: Buy a stethoscope on E-bay, take pics, upload to twitter, contact media &… https://t.co/4GRJZ2GGrZ
— Ilana Mercer (@IlanaMercer) April 9, 2017
'I will video call you': That's the standard of evidence the mighty US has of a chemical attack in Syria? A few conference calls and pics? https://t.co/wHcsWZV94V
— Ilana Mercer (@IlanaMercer) April 9, 2017
'A key witness to the alleged gas attack on Idlib, #Syria was tried in UK for kidnapping journalists with a #jihadist group.' #Trump conned?
— Ilana Mercer (@IlanaMercer) April 9, 2017