Syria’s Ally Russia Tries to Shift Blame for Devastating Chemical Attack

Russian officials blamed Syrian rebels on Wednesday for a chemical attack which killed scores of people, many of them women and children, and has been widely attributed to the Syrian government, reported the Washington Post. The Post called the Russian claim, which has been strongly denied by a rebel commander an “attempt by Moscow to shield its Syrian government allies after global condemnation.”

Videos from the attack in the northwestern town Khan Sheikhoun show victims gasping for air and foaming at the mouth, what the WHO attributes to a chemical attack, possibly by a nerve agent.