sarin

Saturday April 8, 2017

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday April 8, 2017

Is Trump’s bromance with Putin history?

The bromance between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin may be over before it could really blossom.

April 6, 2017

Blame Syrian President Bashar Assad for coming between them.

The Kremlin, a close ally of the Syrian strongman, condemned the U.S. cruise missile attack on a Syrian airfield early Friday morning as an “act of aggression in violation of international law.”

Russia’s Foreign Ministry said it suspended an agreement with the Pentagon to share communication about U.S. and Russian aircraft conducting separate missions over Syria to avoid mishaps.

Russian aircraft support Assad in his fight against rebels, which include the Islamic State, while a U.S.-led coalition is focused exclusively on defeating Islamic State militants.

December 17, 2016

Russia’s decision in 2015  to enter Syria’s civil war with airstrikes against Assad’s opponents strengthened the dictator’s grip on the country when it looked perilous.

Trump ordered the strike in retaliation for Assad’s alleged use of chemical weapons in a rebel-held town Tuesday, but Russia defended Assad, saying the chemicals were released when Syrian planes struck a terrorist lab.

The U.S. strike widens the gulf between Trump and Putin over Assad’s future months after the Russian and American presidents seemed to be coming closer to an agreement to join forces to bring an end to Syria’s six-year-long civil war, defeat the Islamic State in Syria and let Assad stay in power.

After the chemical attack — which killed 86 people, including 27 children — Trump abruptly reversed course, calling for Assad’s ouster, as President Barack Obama had done. That is something Putin has been loath to do since the Syrian leader is one of his few allies in the Middle East. (Source: USA Today) 

 

Friday August 23, 2013

Friday August 23, 2013

Syria gas ‘kills 100s,’ Security Council meets

Syria’s opposition accused government forces of gassing hundreds of people on Wednesday by firing rockets that released deadly fumes over rebel-held Damascus suburbs, killing men, women and children as they slept.

With the death toll estimated between 500 and 1,300, what would be the world’s most lethal chemical weapons attack since the 1980s prompted an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council in New York.

The council did not explicitly demand a U.N. investigation of the incident, although it said “clarity” was needed and welcomed U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon’s calls for a prompt investigation by the U.N. inspection team in Syria, led by Ake Sellstrom.

An earlier Western-drafted statement submitted to the council, seen by Reuters, was not approved. The final version of the statement was watered down to accommodate objections from Russia and China, diplomats said. Moscow and Beijing have vetoed previous Western efforts to impose U.N. penalties on Assad.

Syrian Information Minister Omran Zoabi said the allegations were “illogical and fabricated”. President Bashar al-Assad’s officials have said they would never use poison gas against Syrians. The United States and European allies believe Assad’s forces have used small amounts of sarin before, hence the current U.N. visit.

Immediate international action is likely to be limited, with the divisions among major powers that have crippled efforts to quell 2 1/2 years of civil war still much in evidence.  (Source: Reuters)

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FEEDBACK

This cartoon was featured in a gallery of Editorial Cartoons in the Yahoo! Canada News for August 2013. Here it is on Yahoo News’ Facebook page.