Following the suspected rebel-held town in Syria that claimed over 80 people, mostly children, the United States has issued a warning saying it could resort to unilateral action if the United Nations fails to respond. US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said, "When the United Nations consistently fails in its duty to act collectively, there are times in the life of states that we are compelled to take our own action."
Britain, France, and the US even presented a draft resolution demanding a full investigation of the attack as they blamed the Syrian government. While Syria denies the allegations, its ally Russia blames the rebels, saying the deaths occurred when a government shell hit a rebel chemical weapons depot. Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said at least 86 people, including 30 children, died in the raid on Khan Sheikhoun. Several others were left gasping for air, convulsing and foaming in the mouth.
Haley lashed out at Moscow in a press conference as she held up photographs of child victims. "How many more children have to die before Russia cares? If Russia has the influence in Syria that it claims to have, we need to see them use it. We need to see them put an end to these horrific acts," she said. "If we are not prepared to act, then this council will keep meeting, month after month to express outrage at the continuing use of chemical weapons and it will not end. We will see more conflict in Syria. We will see more pictures that we can never unsee," she said.
While the UN Security Council debated over whether to hold President Bashar Assad's government responsible for the chemical weapons attack, US assessments showed the use of chlorine gas and traces of the nerve agent sarin.
Diplomats at the U.N. Security council sparred Wednesday over whether to hold President Bashar Assad's government responsible for a chemical weapons attack that killed more than 80 people in northern Syria, while U.S. intelligence officials, Doctors Without Borders and the U.N. healthy agency said evidence pointed to nerve gas exposure.
The Trump administration and other world leaders said the Syrian government was to blame, but Moscow, a key ally of Assad, said the assault was caused by a Syrian airstrike that hit a rebel stockpile of chemical arms.
Early U.S. assessments showed the use of chlorine gas and traces of the nerve agent sarin in the Tuesday attack that terrorised the Syrian town of Khan Sheikhoun.
