Are the days of Hitler’s poisonous gas brutality behind us? Several hundred lost their lives in Syria last Wednesday to what many are estimating was a chemical attack. However, the Syrian government has strongly denied any connection to the disastrous event even though photos of the atrocities victims endured have been leaked.
The Syrian government is officially not assuming responsibility for the situation. The chemical attack has not only threatened those directly attacked, but many more have fled the country as refugees. In fact, estimates claim 30,000 people are now refugees as a result of the attack.
U.N. representatives arrived in Syria to investigate; however, the Syrian government would not allow these representatives access to the Damascus area where the supposed chemical attack occurred. Now, as a result of the looming threat, officials for the United States are considering involvement in order to prevent potentially global devastation.
The White House National Security Advisor, Susan Rice, took to Twitter to condemn those responsible for the attacks.
The Syrian government must allow the UN access to the attack site to investigate. Those responsible will be held accountable.
— Susan Rice (@AmbassadorRice) August 21, 2013
What is Bashar al Assad hiding? The world is demanding an independent investigation of Wednesday’s apparent CW attack. Immediately.
— Susan Rice (@AmbassadorRice) August 23, 2013
Barrack Obama said in a CNN exclusive, “Some core issues that the United States has both in terms of us making sure that methods of mass destruction are not proliferating as well as needing to protect our allies, our bases in the region. I think that it is fair to say that as difficult as the problem is, this is something that is going to require America’s attention and hopefully the entire international community’s attention.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QP13L-7Jes0
President Barrack Obama shared his concerns with CNN. “If the U.S. goes in and attacks another country, without a U.N. mandate and without clear evidence that can be presented then there are questions in terms of whether international law supports it, ‘Do we have the coalition to make it work?’ Those are considerations that we have to take into account,” President Obama said.
[Image via Wikimedia Commons is not indicative of potential considerations by U.S. government]