Western Countries Pledge to 'Hold Accountable' Perpetrators of Chemical Attacks in Syria

Douma was chemically attacked in 2018 (Reuters)
Douma was chemically attacked in 2018 (Reuters)
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Western Countries Pledge to 'Hold Accountable' Perpetrators of Chemical Attacks in Syria

Douma was chemically attacked in 2018 (Reuters)
Douma was chemically attacked in 2018 (Reuters)

Western countries escalated their campaign against the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, after the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) issued a report on Friday accusing Damascus of carrying a chemical weapon attack on Douma near the Syrian capital in 2018.

The report concluded that there are "reasonable grounds to believe that the Syrian Arab Air Forces were the perpetrators of the chemical weapons attack on April 7, 2018, in Douma, Syrian Arab Republic."

It indicated that at least one helicopter of the Syrian "Tiger Forces" Elite Unit dropped two yellow cylinders containing toxic chlorine gas on two apartment buildings in a civilian-inhabited area in Douma, killing 43 named individuals and affecting dozens more.

In response, the Syrian Foreign Ministry said Saturday that the OPCW report contained no evidence and denied the new allegations.

Syria denies using chemical weapons, but a previous joint inquiry of the UN and the OPCW found that the Syrian government used the nerve agent sarin in an April 2017 attack and has repeatedly used chlorine as a weapon, according to Reuters.

On Friday, the US State Department distributed a joint statement from Secretary of State Antony Blinken, British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs James Cleverly, French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, and German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock.

The statement stated that the OPCW report marked the ninth instance of chemical weapons use independently attributed to the Assad regime by UN and OPCW mechanisms.

"Our governments condemn in the strongest terms the Syrian regime's repeated use of these horrific weapons and remain steadfast in our demands that the Assad regime immediately complies with its obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) and relevant UN Security Council resolutions," read the statement.

They asserted that Syria must fully declare and destroy its chemical weapons program and allow the deployment of OPCW staff to its country to verify it has done so.

The report indicated that the Investigation and Identification Team (IIT) received credible information, corroborated through multiple sources, that Russian forces were co-located at Dumayr airbase alongside the Tiger Forces.

The IIT also obtained information that, at the time of the attack, the airspace over Douma was exclusively controlled by the Syrian Arab Air Force and the Russian Aerospace Defence Forces.

Although the ministers' statement did not directly accuse Russia of being involved in the chemical attack, it ​​called on the Russian Federation to stop shielding Syria from accountability for its use of chemical weapons.

"No amount of disinformation from the Kremlin can hide its hand in abetting the Assad regime."

The statement noted that Russian military police helped the Syrian regime obstruct OPCW access to the site of the attack and attempted to sanitize the area.

Russian and Syrian troops also staged photographs later disseminated online to support its fabricated narratives of this incident.

The ministers reaffirmed their commitment to hold accountable the perpetrators of all chemical weapons attacks in Syria and beyond.

Meanwhile, the preparatory committee for the Arab and International Popular Campaign to Lift the Siege on Syria called on the Union of Arab Lawyers and all human rights organizations o study the possibility of prosecuting the US administration before the international courts for genocide and war crimes against humanity.

The committee announced that it would prepare a comprehensive scientific study on the effects of the Western blockade on economic, social, health, educational, and cultural aspects.

The Arab and International Popular Campaign to Lift the Siege on Syria was launched on December 28, with the participation of Arab parties, organizations, and figures that support the Syrian regime.



France Says Algeria Threatening to Expel Diplomatic Staff 

This handout photograph released by French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs (MEAE) shows France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot meeting with Algeria's Foreign Minister at the ministry headquarters in Algiers on April 6, 2025. (AFP Photo / Handout / Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs)
This handout photograph released by French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs (MEAE) shows France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot meeting with Algeria's Foreign Minister at the ministry headquarters in Algiers on April 6, 2025. (AFP Photo / Handout / Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs)
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France Says Algeria Threatening to Expel Diplomatic Staff 

This handout photograph released by French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs (MEAE) shows France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot meeting with Algeria's Foreign Minister at the ministry headquarters in Algiers on April 6, 2025. (AFP Photo / Handout / Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs)
This handout photograph released by French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs (MEAE) shows France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot meeting with Algeria's Foreign Minister at the ministry headquarters in Algiers on April 6, 2025. (AFP Photo / Handout / Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs)

France said on Monday that Algeria had threatened to expel 12 of its diplomatic staff and that it would take immediate reprisals should that occur in the latest flare-up between them.

Algeria protested over the weekend against Frances's detention of an Algerian consular agent suspected of involvement in the kidnapping of an Algerian. French media said three people, including the diplomat, were under investigation over the seizure of Algerian government opponent Amir Boukhors.

"The Algerian authorities are demanding that 12 of our agents leave Algerian territory within 48 hours," French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said in a statement.

"If the decision to expel our agents is maintained, we will have no choice but to respond immediately."

There was no immediate confirmation from Algeria of an imminent expulsion.

France's relations with its former colony have long been complicated, but took a turn for the worse last year when French President Emmanuel Macron angered Algeria by backing Morocco's position over the disputed Western Sahara region.

Only last week, Barrot had said ties were returning to normal after a visit to Algeria.