US says Syria’s Assad might be using chemical weapons again

The US State Department reportedly uncovered evidence that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has continued to use chemical weapons against civilians, per a press release, issuing a warning that the US and its allies would respond “quickly and appropriately” if the violence was verified.

It has been nearly a year since US President Trump ordered air strikes in Syria in response to a chemical weapons attack.

The State Department also pointed to false narratives Russian government-run media have been circulating about the White Helmets — a group that tries to rescue civilians during strikes — as part of an attempt to place blame on others for the chemical attacks.

These stories are a “pretext in advance of the Assad regime’s own barbaric chemical weapons attacks.”

Syrian forces are said to have carried out a chemical attack in Idlib, Syria on May 19, which, if proven true, violates a ceasefire agreement protecting millions of civilians.