Iran: Chemical Weapons in Syria a Red Line for Us, Too...

But Tehran thinks the rebels are to blame
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 30, 2013 12:13 PM CDT
Iran: Chemical Weapons in Syria a Red Line for Us, Too...
In this March 19 file photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, a victim who suffered an alleged chemical attack at Khan al-Assal village receives treatment by doctors in Aleppo.   (AP Photo/SANA, File)

Iran agrees with the US that the use of chemical weapons in Syria is a "red line" that cannot be crossed. But while the US thinks, but can't say for sure, that the government used chemicals on rebel fighters, Iran suggests precisely the opposite, reports Reuters. Its foreign minister today called on the UN to investigate Bashar al-Assad's claims that anti-government fighters used toxins, reports the AP.

"We have always emphasized that the use of chemical weapons on the part of anyone is our red line," said Ali Akbar Salehi. "We have also requested that in accordance with the Syrian government, which emphasizes that the opposition has used these weapons, the United Nations ... identify the main culprit in this regard, which is the opposition." Tehran, like the US, didn't spell out what it would do if it got such evidence, but it presumably means more direct military intervention. (More Iran stories.)

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