France ready for military actions in Syria after the use of chemical weapons by Assad troops 0506131

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Defence & Security News - France

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Wednesday, June 5, 2013 08:46 AM
 
France ready for military actions in Syria after the use of chemical weapons by Assad troops.
France has "no doubt" that the Syrian regime had used the deadly nerve agent sarin in conflicts with rebels and "all options are on the table" to end the conflicts in the violence-torn country including military actions, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said Tuesday, June 4, 2013.
     
France has "no doubt" that the Syrian regime had used the deadly nerve agent sarin in conflicts with rebels and "all options are on the table" to end the conflicts in the violence-torn country including military actions, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said Tuesday, June 4, 2013.
France is now certain that the deadly nerve agent sarin gas has been used several times during the conflict in Syria, Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said Tuesday, citing tests carried out by a French laboratory.
     

"There is no doubt that it was the regime and its accomplices because we are aware of the entire chain from when the attack took place, to when the people were killed and when the sample was taken," Fabius said.

In an interview with the state-run TV channel France 2, the French top diplomat stressed that Syrian officials have "undoubtedly" crossed a "red line" and that France, the United States and Britain were discussing how to react.

"All options are on the table. That means either we decide not to react or we decide to react including by armed actions targeting the place where the gas is stored," the minister said.

France was testing samples of suspected chemical weapon elements used against Syrian rebel fighters and which were obtained by reporters with Le Monde newspaper.

In a separate statement, Fabius unveiled that the analysis showed that "the sarin gas was used in Syria several times and with localized manner."

Earlier on Tuesday, the United Nation also said there are "reasonable grounds" to believe that chemical agents have been used as weapons in Syria, citing a report of the International Commission of Inquiry on Syria as the source.

The UN report said that Syrian government possessed a number of chemical weapons, while "it is possible" that anti-government armed groups may access and use chemical weapons as well. "In some instances, anti-government armed groups have also employed this tactic," said the report, while indicating that further investigation is undergoing.

As to the United States, President Barrack Obama has previously declared that the use of chemical weapons would "change the rule of the game," while hitting the "red line" would make it possible for forceful U.S. intervention in Syria.