Assad claims chemical attack was '100% fabricated'

The United States ‘fabricated’ the horrific chemical attack in Syria to justify their attack on an airbase, Syria’s president has claimed.

Bashar al-Assad, accused of killing dozens of his own people by dropping sarin nerve gas from planes, claimed the suspected chemical weapons attack on a rebel-held town did not take place.

‘Definitely, 100 percent for us, it’s fabrication…’ he said.

‘Our impression is that the West, mainly the United States, is hand-in-glove with the terrorists.’

Devastating photos from the alleged attack on April 4 show young children receiving treatment, along with a father cradling his dead twins.

Britain’s Ambassador, Sir Geoffrey Adams, said UK scientists have analysed samples from the attack and they ‘tested positive for the nerve agent sarin, or a sarin-like substance.’

Earlier this week, Turkish doctors also said that test results conducted on victims confirmed that sarin gas was used.

But in his first interview since American cruise missiles hit a central Syrian air base, Assad said: ‘They (the US) fabricated the whole story in order to have a pretext for the attack.’

The United States launched 59 cruise missiles at a Syrian airfield last Thursday to retaliate against the chemical weapons attack, which killed 87 people, many of them children.

The Syrian government allegedly launched the chemical attack in Khan Sheikhoun to put pressure on Syrian rebels who were making advances in the area.

Officials denied fabricating the attack, saying that all evidence pointed towards it being a government attack.

US intelligence indicates sarin was dropped by Su-22 aircraft that took off from the Shayrat airfield, a White House report given to reporters said.

The planes were in the area about 20 minutes before the attack began and left the area shortly afterward, the report said.

People ‘historically associated; with the chemical weapons programme were at the airfield in late March making preparations, and were present on the day of the attack, the report said.

Trump said he felt compelled to respond after seeing images of ‘beautiful babies’ killed in the attack.