Special to WorldTribune.com

WASHINGTON — The United States, despite an acknowledgement of
President Bashar Assad’s use of chemical weapons, continues to rule out
military intervention in Syria.

The administration of President Barack Obama has confirmed evidence that
Assad’s military fired CW munitions toward Sunni rebel strongholds. But
officials said the determination lacked details that could trigger a U.S.
response.

“The chain of custody is not clear, so we cannot confirm how the
exposure occurred and under what conditions,” a White House official said.

In a briefing on April 25, the official said the U.S. intelligence
community required more information on Assad’s CW attacks. He said the
community determined that the Assad regime did not engage in widespread use of CW.

In late 2012 and early 2013, Obama warned Assad several times against CW attacks. The U.S. president said such operations would cross a “red line” and pave the way for all options.

“If we reach a definitive determination that this red line has been
crossed based on credible corroborated information, what we will be doing is consulting closely with our friends and allies and the international
community more broadly, and the Syrian opposition, to determine what the
best course of action is,” the official said.

For more than a month, the administration refused to confirm reports of
CW attacks in such cities as Aleppo, Damascus and Homs. The use of CW was
confirmed by Britain, France and Israel, which sparked questions in the
Senate Armed Services Committee.

“Given the stakes involved, given how serious the situation is and what
we’ve learned from our own recent experience, intelligence assessments are
not alone sufficient [for action],” the official said. “Only credible and
corroborated facts that provide us with some degree of certainty can then
guide our decision making.”

The United Nations has received evidence from several NATO states and
plans its own investigation. The UN investigation was meant to determine
whether Assad violated the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention.

“We don’t have any right to remain insensitive to a regime that bombs
its cities and massacres its citizens without discrimination,” Turkish
Minister on EU Affairs Egemen Bagis said during his visit to the United States on
April 26. “We all have a responsibility.”

  Aleppo, Bashar Assad, CW munitions, Homs, Iraq leader: ‘Evil’ Al Qaida forces cross border from Syria, Senate Armed Services Committee, Sunni rebels