Iran Has Serious Doubts About US Allegations on Use of Chemical Weapons in Syria

Iran has serious doubts about US reports that the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad used chemical weapons in Khan Sheikhoun, Syria, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — US officials have said that Syrian regime jets carried out a chemical attack on a rebel stronghold in Khan Sheikhoun on April 4, 2017.

In response to the attack, the United States on April 7 launched 59 cruise missiles on Shayrat Airbase, which Washington said was the base from which the attack was conducted.

"We believe that allegations of the use chemical weapons need to be investigated. And there are mechanisms for investigating them," Zarif said on Monday. "We have serious doubts that the recent allegations by the United States about the use of chemical weapons against Khan Sheikhoun can be verified."

Zarif said Iran called for tests at the air base in the immediate aftermath of the initial attack to determine whether chemical weapons were loaded onto planes there, as the United States alleges.

But he added that the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons refused to go to Shayrat to carry out the tests.

On April 21, Syrian President Bashar Assad told Sputnik that there was no chemical weapon attack in Idlib, adding that the reports were a false flag operation and a fabrication aimed at justifying a US missile strike on the Syrian airbase.