White Helmets warn Assad against using chemical weapons in Syria

The director of the White Helmets, the Syrian civil defense organization that operates in opposition-held areas, has warned that Syria’s authoritarian President Bashar Al-Assad could soon use chemical weapons against civilians to stop rebels advancing in the country’s northwest.

Raed Al-Saleh made the remarks on Tuesday during a UN Security Council meeting, raising alarm over the Syrian regime’s expected retaliation against the rebels’ lightning advance.

Al-Saleh, who has been drawing attention to the Syrian regime’s attacks on civilians for years, called for the protection of the people in the country.

“For six days, as the map of military control has changed, the brutal attacks by the Syrian regime, Russia and Iranian border militias against Syrians, especially in areas in northwestern Syria that are beyond their control, have escalated,” he said, pointing out The White Helmets have responded to 275 attacks, killing over 100 people in recent days.

“I am deeply concerned for the lives of every Syrian as the threat of chemical attacks remains real,” he continued.

This came as Syrian opposition fighters captured towns and cities in an offensive called “Operation Deter the Aggression.” The offensive is being carried out by an alliance led by the hardline Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.

The rebels say their operation was a response to the regime’s Russian- and Iranian-backed attacks on northwest Syria in recent weeks.

They say their offensive aims to “ensure the return of the displaced, end the reign of corruption and tyranny, and build a new Syria that is home to all its people.”

Chemical attacks

Al-Saleh said the Syrian regime has a long history of using chemical weapons against civilians, citing the example of Douma in Damascus province in 2018.

He added that a report by the Director General of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons found that the Syrian regime had admitted to continuing the production and development of chemical weapons.

“This is a dangerous indicator for the safety of civilians and a clear violation of UN Security Council Resolution 2118 and the Chemical Weapons Convention,” Al-Saleh said.

“The international community’s failure to hold the regime accountable for these violations puts civilians at risk of chemical attacks at all times,” he added.

He also used his speech to call on Russia to stop obstructing international decisions and efforts to combat the use of chemical weapons.

According to Al-Saleh, Russia is also protecting the Syrian regime and spreading disinformation about the White Helmets.

Al-Saleh warned of the looming threat of chemical weapons and called for urgent action to protect humanitarian workers, civilians and first responders from attacks by the Syrian regime.

Rebels advance

As Syrian rebels advanced into key cities in recent days in a surprise offensive that saw them capture almost all of northwestern Syria, regime forces and Russia responded with dozens of airstrikes.

The attacks on the rebels have triggered a huge wave of displacement and unrest.

Alarmed by the widening conflict and the apparent threat to Assad’s control, Iran, a key backer of Assad, said on Tuesday it would consider sending troops to Syria if asked to do so.

The White Helmets have been carrying out rescue operations in recent days following airstrikes that targeted a university, a church, residential areas and public spaces in what they called a blatant violation of international humanitarian law.