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Sunday 9 April 2017 - 04:43

Iran, Russia Slam US Aggression on Syria as Terrorists, Israel, Saudis Hail Attack

Story Code : 625719
Iran, Russia Slam US Aggression on Syria as Terrorists, Israel, Saudis Hail Attack
Some 60 US Tomahawk missiles were fired from US warships deployed to the Mediterranean at the Shayrat airfield southeast of Homs early on Friday.
 
Russian President Vladimir Putin “regards the strikes as aggression against a sovereign nation,” his spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. He added that Putin believes the strikes were carried out “in violation of international law, and also under an invented pretext.”
 
Peskov also insisted that “the Syrian army doesn’t have chemical weapons,” saying this had been “observed and confirmed by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, a special UN unit.” Putin sees the US missile strike on Syria as an attempt to distract attention from civilian casualties in Iraq, Peskov added.
 
“This step deals significant damage to US-Russian ties, which are already in a deplorable state,” Peskov said.
 
Meanwhile, Russia will demand an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council in connection with the Thursday missile strike launched by the US on a military airfield in Syria’s Homs province, Victor Ozerov, the chairman of the Russian Federation Council's Committee on Defense and Security, has said.
 
In a related development, Bolivia has requested to convene an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss the US missile strikes on an airbase in Syria.
 
"Bolivia has called for a meeting of the UN Security Council, its time is yet unknown," a diplomat representing the country has on condition of anonymity.
 
The South American country is a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.
 
US Attack on Syria violates international law: Iran
 
Elsewhere Iran has strongly condemned US cruise missile attack that hit a Syrian army airbase near the west-central city of Homs.
 
In a Friday statement, Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi said Tehran “roundly condemns any unilateral military action and the missile attacks”.
 
Qassemi said, “The Islamic Republic, as the biggest victim of chemical weapons in modern history, condemns any application of such weapons, regardless of the perpetrators and victims.”
 
The Iranian official further said using an alleged chemical attack as “a pretext for a unilateral action” is “dangerous, destructive and in violation of the imperative principles of international law.”
 
He added that the US strike comes while “the timing, perpetrators, and benefactors” of the deadly attack in Idlib is still “shrouded in mystery,” emphasizing that Washington’s move would only strengthen the terrorist groups and complicate the situation on the ground in Syria and the entire region.
 
US attack on Syria serves ISIS
 
Talal Barazi, Governor of Syria’s Hams province that was targeted, has said US missile strikes serve the goals of "armed terrorist groups" and ISIS, reiterating that the "aggression" will not prevent the Syrian government from "fighting terrorism."
 
"This attack will not prevent us from continuing fighting terrorism. We are not surprised to see America and Israel supporting this terrorism," Barazi said in a phone interview with state television.
 
Israeli, Saudi regime join terrorists to praise attack
 
Meanwhile, as expected, the Saudi regime has hailed the US aggression on Syria calling it a “courageous decision” by President Trump.
 
Israeli regime’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office celebrated the attack with an early morning statement, saying he supported "strong message" sent by US strikes.
 
Both Israel and Saudi Arabia are among the major backers of terrorist groups committing gruesome atrocities in Syria.
 
US President Donald Trump said has addressed the media saying he ordered missile strikes against a Syrian airfield from which a chemical weapons attack was allegedly launched this week.
 
The Syrian government has categorically denied carrying out a chemical attack. Russia has said the deaths in Idlib were caused when a Syrian airstrike struck a "terrorist warehouse used for making bombs with toxic substances”.
 
The strategic base which was partly destroyed during the illegal US aggression on Thursday night is a major center in Syria army operations against foreign-backed terrorists. The same base was used to fire air defense missiles at Israeli regime warplanes that violated Syria’s airspace in in March. Following the incident, the Israeli regime threatened to destroy Syria’s air defense systems.
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