President of the Syrian Coalition Anas Abdah telephoned the chair of the International Independent Commission of Inquiry on Syria Paulo Pinheiro to discuss details of the massacre committed by regime forces using chemical weapons against civilians in the town of Khan Sheikoun in rural Idlib on Tuesday.
The two sides discussed the possibility of the Commission to conduct an urgent investigation into the crime claiming the lives of 100 people, including 25 children and 15 women, and injuring 400 others, according to figures put out by the Directorate of Health in Idlib province.
The European Union’s top diplomat Federica Mogherini said that Bashar al-Assad held “primary responsibility” for the chemical attack.
Meanwhile, France called for an urgent UN Security Council meeting to discuss the attack.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the massacre threatens the Astana meetings during a telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
The Syrian Civil Defense said that its crews continue search and rescue operations at the scene of the crime.
The International Independent Commission of Inquiry on Syria has previously issued report confirming the involvement of the Assad regime in a number of chemical attacks against civilians in Syria. Russia and China have blocked a draft resolution at the Security Council calling for the imposition of sanctions on the Assad regime following the results of the report.
The town of Khan Sheikhoun is located in southern rural Idlib and home to around 100,000 people, including 12,000 displaced people. It is under full control of the Free Syrian Army and is subject to daily bombardment by the Assad regime and Russian air forces. (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department)
