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Syria opposition blames Assad regime for 60 chemical attacks

06 May 2014 20:29 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Syrian opposition leaders based in Istanbul accused on Tuesday Syrian President Bashir al-Assad and forces loyal to his regime of carrying out more than 60 chemical attacks in 15 different locations inside Syria, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

Representatives of the Western-backed Syrian interim government alleged in a press conference that Assad's government used banned chemical weapons.

Defense Minister Asaad Mostafa alleged the Syrian government intends to create chaos by killing civilians throughout the country, adding that the attacks are a tactic used to distract revolutionaries and prevent them from toppling the regime.

Two weeks ago, Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad flatly denied opposition allegations that Syria used toxic gas in rebel-held areas, calling the accusations "absolutely baseless."

Earlier in April, two people were killed and 100 others suffered from suffocation after an alleged chlorine gas attack left the rebel-held town of Kafr Zeita. Syrian official media accused rebel groups of orchestrating the attacks.

According to opposition interim government's sources, the Syrian army will most likely attack the border town of Kassab, which is 20 km away from the Turkish border.

Mostafa said that the Syrian army forces have been hiding chemical weapons inside the tunnels near the Mediterranean Sea offshore, adding that the Syrian government prevented the international investigation teams from visiting the tunnels.

The Syrian opposition has appealed to the international community to prevent the Syrian government from using the banned weapons and killing civilians.