France reveals 'proof' Bashar al Assad carried out Syria chemical attack
Foreign minister says intelligence services compared samples from 2013 attack
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.France has said it has proof Bashar al-Assad's government was behind the recent sarin chemical weapons attack in Syria.
Foreign affairs minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said France had made the determination based on comparing samples from another attack in 2013.
He said: "We know, from a certain source, that the process of fabrication of the samples taken is typical of the method developed in Syrian laboratories.
"This method is the signature of the regime and it is what enables us to establish the responsibility of the attack. We know because we kept samples from previous attacks that we were able to use for comparison."
The attack on the village of Khan Sheikhoun, on 4 April, killed scores of people including children.
It has been claimed the regime still has a stockpile hundreds of tonnes of chemical weapons despite saying it had handed over all of them.
French intelligence agents are aware that a Syrian Sukhoi 22 warplane struck Khan Sheikhoun six times on the day of the attack, Mr Ayrault said.
There is no doubt that sarin used there was manufactured in Syrian laboratories, he added.
Additional reporting by agencies
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments