The White House has accused the Syrian President of preparing for a major chemical attack.<br /><br />Officials warned Bashar al-Assad and his military will “pay a heavy price” if it carries out such an attack.<br /><br />Officials released the unusual statement late on Monday saying they believe preparations are underway.<br /><br />Have they given any details?<br /><br />Some. They have said preparations are underway that resemble those undertaken before a chemical attack on April 4 that killed dozens of civilians.<br /><br />It also prompted US President Donald Trump to order a cruise missile strike on a Syrian air base.<br /><br />But is there any concrete evidence of preparations for an attack?<br /><br />The intelligence is not considered conclusive. US and allied intelligence officers have identified several sites where they suspect the Assad government may be hiding newly-made chemical weapons from inspectors.<br /><br />The assessment is partly based on the locations, security surrounding the suspect sites and other information which has not been revealed.<br /><br />Officials say the White House warning is based on new reports of what is described as abnormal activity that might be associated with preparations for a chemical attack.<br /><br />Officials decided to issue the warning to the Assad regime about the consequences of a chemical attack on civilians in an attempt to deter a strike.<br /><br />What happened in April?<br /><br />Trump ordered the strike on the Shayrat airfield in Syria. It was in reaction to what Washington said was a poison gas attack by Assad’s government. <br /><br />87 people died in the rebel-held territory. Syria denied carrying out the attack.<br /><br />Assad told reporters that the alleged April attack was “100 percent fabrication” used to justify a US air strike.<br /><br />It was the toughest direct US action yet in Syria’s six-year-old civil war, raising the risk of confrontation with Russia and Iran, Assad’s two main military backers.<br /><br />US oficials called the intervention a “one-off” intended to deter future chemical weapons attacks and not an expansion of the US role in the Syrian war.<br /><br />What they are saying<br /><br />“The United States has identified potential preparations for another chemical weapons attack by the Assad regime that would likely result in the mass murder of civilians, including innocent children,” – White House spokesman Sean Spicer.<br /><br />Any further attacks done to the people of Syria will be blamed on Assad, but also on Russia & Iran who support him killing his own people.— Nikki Haley (@nikkihaley) 27 juin 2017<br /><br /><br />“Any further attacks done to the people of Syria will be blamed on Assad, but also on Russia and Iran who support him killing his own people,” – US Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley.<br />
