This refers to the editorial, “Deadly weapon attack” (April 7). The chemical attack in Idlib Province in Syria bore all the hallmarks of the Government forces. The denial by the Bashar al-Assad regime is far from convincing. The statement by the state media that the tragedy occurred as a result of the explosion of the “poison gas factory” run by rebels falls flat on its face in view of the fact that the chemical attack was carried out by an air strike and the rebels did not possess the capability to launch an air strike.
Still, there are no mechanisms in place to accelerate effective international intervention to dethrone Bashar al-Assad for his inhumanity towards his own people or make the latest chemical attack the last of its kind. The West has shifted its policy on the ongoing war in Syria from getting rid of Assad to fighting the Islamic State. Regime change is no more on its agenda. The Syrian conflict is unique in that the madness is not restricted to any one side. The US-led coalition has killed more civilians than the IS or the Russian-led forces.