Remember when president Obama made use of chemical weapons in Syria a "red line" for the USA? The Syrian government then went ahead and used those weapons repeatedly with the result that something like 1000 civilians were killed by these WMDs. Obama dithered at that point as to whether to do anything, but he finally made a deal with Russia and the Assad regime in Syria that Syria would never again use the weapons and would give up all of its stockpile of chemical weapons. It was a major embarrassment to the USA because our allies and enemies saw that Obama would not follow through on a stated warning. Nevertheless, Obama still calls it a major victory.
For what it's worth, here are the first three paragraphs of a Reuters story today:
International investigators have said for the first time that they suspect Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his brother are responsible for the use of chemical weapons in the Syrian conflict, according to a document seen by Reuters.
A joint inquiry for the United Nations and global watchdog the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) had previously identified only military units and did not name any commanders or officials.
Now a list has been produced of individuals whom the investigators have linked to a series of chlorine bomb attacks in 2014-15—including Assad, his younger brother Maher and other high-ranking figures—indicating the decision to use toxic weapons came from the very top, according to a source familiar with the inquiry.
So there you have it. Assad did not give up all his chemical weapons. Assad did not stop using chemical weapons on civilians. Assad basically thumbed his nose at Obama and the USA and has gotten away with it.
No doubt, president Obama and his people will call this another major victory. Thank God there are only six days left until he goes!
For what it's worth, here are the first three paragraphs of a Reuters story today:
International investigators have said for the first time that they suspect Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his brother are responsible for the use of chemical weapons in the Syrian conflict, according to a document seen by Reuters.
A joint inquiry for the United Nations and global watchdog the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) had previously identified only military units and did not name any commanders or officials.
Now a list has been produced of individuals whom the investigators have linked to a series of chlorine bomb attacks in 2014-15—including Assad, his younger brother Maher and other high-ranking figures—indicating the decision to use toxic weapons came from the very top, according to a source familiar with the inquiry.
So there you have it. Assad did not give up all his chemical weapons. Assad did not stop using chemical weapons on civilians. Assad basically thumbed his nose at Obama and the USA and has gotten away with it.
No doubt, president Obama and his people will call this another major victory. Thank God there are only six days left until he goes!
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