U.S. State Department Attempting To Change Narrative - Claiming 'False Flag' Chemical Attack In Syria

U.S. Claims 'False Flag' Chemical Attack In Syria

So apparently the U.S. government believes that chemical false flag attacks in Syria are possible.

On Friday the State Dept. issued an official statement claiming "credible information" that refutes prior Syrian government and Russian claims of an opposition chemical weapons attack in Aleppo on Nov. 24. 

The event was the first time throughout the seven-year long war that international headlines pointed to anti-Assad rebels using chemical weapons, in this case chlorine, against government areas. So of course for U.S. officials it must be a false flag attack staged by Assad. 

On Nov. 24, the Assad regime & #Russia falsely accused the opposition & extremist groups of conducting a chlorine attack in northwestern Aleppo. U.S. strongly refutes this narrative & has credible info. pro-regime forces likely used teargas against civilians in Aleppo on Nov. 24. pic.twitter.com/ssFm7ZYEUd

— U.S. Embassy Syria (@USEmbassySyria) December 7, 2018

That's precisely what the US is now claiming, saying in a statement that "the Assad regime and Russia falsely accused the opposition and extremist groups of conducting a chlorine attack in northwestern Aleppo." The statement, issued by Deputy Spokesperson Robert Palladino, claims the Syrian government carried out a tear gas attack on Aleppo civilians and promptly blamed a fabricated chlorine attack on anti-Assad fighters.

The US further claims the Syrian government will seek to manipulate the site of the attack to make it look like pro-government civilians were victims of chemical weapons ahead of an investigation by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). The US says the Assad government will "fabricate samples and contaminate the site before a proper investigation". 

This section of the official State Dept. press release reads as follows: 

The United States is deeply concerned that pro-regime officials have maintained control of the attack site in its immediate aftermath, allowing them to potentially fabricate samples and contaminate the site before a proper investigation of it by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. We caution Russia and the regime against tampering with the suspected attack site and urge them to secure the safety of impartial, independent inspectors so that those responsible can be held accountable.

During the late November attack over 100 civilians had been reported hospitalized, including dozens of women and children, after the anti-Assad militants unleashed a wave of mortars filled with poison gas on government on Aleppo neighborhoods. 

Syrian state-run SANA published multiple photos and video of victims in the city's hospitals at the time being treated for what was reported to be chlorine gas exposure. Though it wasn't the first time that 'rebels' seeking to topple the Assad government conducted a chemical attack on pro-government areas according to United Nations findings, it was the first time that mainstream American outlets like CNN and Reuters featured coverage of such events.

This is the dumbest thing I've read all day. There has literally been a chlorine attack in Aleppo city before, and that was when Jaish Islam struck the YPG at Sheikh Masqoud with shells. They even admitted to doing this and apologized for it. https://t.co/H780zRJKUn

— TØM CΛT (@TomtheBasedCat) December 7, 2018

Apparently such headlines were too much for Washington officials, who are now belatedly shouting "false flag" while failing to produce any level of smoking gun evidence — ironically something western pundits and officials have long accused and mocked Syrian pro-government and Russian media of doing in the past. 

Below is a report produced by The Libertarian Institute providing a partial list of incidents wherein the United Nations and mainstream media quietly admitted the anti-Assad insurgency possesses and has used chemical weapons. 

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) says the Nov. 24 armed opposition/Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) mortar attack on three districts in government-held Aleppo did involve chemical gas. Over 100 people were hospitalized by what was widely reported to be a chlorine attack.

According to SOHR, as reported by Reuters: “In Aleppo city which the government controls, the shells had spread a strong stench and caused breathing problems, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also said.”