The United States slammed on Friday the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, warning that it will hold him to account for the chemical attacks it had launched during the conflict that erupted in 2011.
“In January, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons found the Assad regime responsible for the chemical attack on Douma in 2018 that killed 43, just as it was for the chemical attack on Khan Sheikhoun six years ago this week which killed nearly 100. There can be no impunity for users of chemical weapons,” the US Embassy in Syria tweeted.
“No amount of Russian and regime disinformation can refute the facts and the thorough analysis of expert OPCW investigators. We know what happened in Douma, Khan Sheikhoun, and elsewhere in Syria, and we will continue to seek accountability for those responsible.”
The government has repeatedly denied that it had used chemical weapons during the war.
In wake of the Ghouta attack in 2013, it agreed to destroy its chemical weapons arsenal under a Russian-sponsored deal.
Last week, the US imposed sanctions against two members of the Assad family for their role in the smuggling of Captagon narcotics.
The sanctions, imposed in coordination between the US and the UK, targeted Samer Kamal al-Assad and Wassim Badi al-Assad.
In 2020, 84 million Captagon pills were produced at a factory owned by Samer in Latakia, the US Treasury said.
“Syria has become a global leader in the production of highly addictive Captagon, much of which is trafficked through Lebanon,” said Treasury official Andrea Gacki.
The stimulant has spawned an illegal $10 billion industry.
