Turkey Says Obtained Intel Showing Assad Regime Behind Chemical Attack

Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said on Friday that Turkey's intelligence authorities have obtained information which confirms there was a chemical attack in a Damascus suburb known as Ghouta on Aug. 21 that killed more than 1,000 and injured many more and leaves no doubt that the Syrian regime was behind it.



Davutoğlu's remarks came soon after Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency announced that it had obtained technical details confirming that regime forces launched the chemical attack.



Anadolu reported on Friday that it had accessed a document listing army units and details of last week's chemical attack that killed more than a thousand civilians in a Damascus suburb.



The report said the Syrian army's 155th Missile Brigade was responsible for the attack at 2: 45 a.m. on Aug. 21 on sites in the Zamelka and Douma-Harasta regions in eastern and western Ghouta.



The report noted that up to 20 missiles with chemical weapon heads were fired from two separate centers near Damascus. Anadolu said the list was also sent to the Turkish government by its sources.



Speaking to reporters at the Foreign Ministry, Davutoğlu noted that there was no other incident in history where UN norms had been violated this way. "We still prefer the UN to take action against the Syrian regime," he added.



Davutoğlu also noted that if the world does not respond to Syria's chemical attacks, other countries possessing chemical arms will feel unconstrained.



Commenting on debates over whether the government needs a new mandate from Parliament that would allow Turkey to be part of a military operation against the war-torn country, Davutoğlu added that there is currently no need for a mandate.



Turkey sees Syria intervention process as intact despite UK vote



Turkey, which is likely to join an international coalition that will possibly intervene in the Syrian civil war, considers the possible intervention process to be intact despite the British parliament's vote against possible military action in Syria, said a senior Turkish diplomat to Today's Zaman.



"There is an ongoing process and several countries will express their opinion over it," said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, adding that there was one clear point: The Bashar al-Assad regime should be punished for the latest chemical attack.



The British parliament voted against a motion by British Prime Minister David Cameron to authorize a military response to Syria. British Defense Secretary Philip Hammond confirmed that Britain would not be involved in any action against Syria.



Cameron said on Friday he regretted the failure of the British parliament to support military action in Syria but said he hoped that President Barack Obama would understand the need to listen to the wishes of the people.



"I think the American public, the American people and President Obama will understand," Cameron said just hours after parliament voted against a government motion to authorize the principle of military action in Syria.



"I haven't spoken to him (Obama) since the debate and the vote but I would expect to speak to him over the next day or so. I don't think it's a question of having to apologize," Cameron said in an interview aired on British television channels.



However, French President Francois Hollande said the vote would not affect France's will to act to punish Assad's government for an apparent chemical weapons attack on civilians.



Hollande told the Le Monde daily in an interview that he supported taking "firm" punitive action over an attack he said had caused "irreparable" harm to the Syrian people and said he would work closely with France's allies.



When asked if France could take action without Britain, Hollande replied: "Yes. Each country is sovereign to participate or not in an operation. That is valid for Britain as it is for France."



(Cihan/Today's Zaman)