'Inhuman' chemical attack tests Turkey's relations with Russia
An apparent chemical attack has ravaged a small rebel-held Syrian town and Turkey has found itself in the middle of the aftermath, torn between supporting anti-Assad rebels and its need to ally with Russia.
Turkey’s quest to justify its recent courtship of Russia looks more difficult today in the aftermath of a suspected chemical attack on a rebel-held town in Idlib province in northwestern Syria near the Turkish border.
At least 65 people were killed and 350 wounded by jets that struck Khan Sheikhoun in the early morning, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported. The aircraft thought to belong to the Syrian air force then reportedly attacked local clinics treating survivors, medics and activists said. Horrific images of lifeless children, and of others foaming at the mouth and convulsing, have flooded social media. Turkey’s pro-government Yeni Safak newspaper claimed that a mosque was hit in the strikes.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described the attacks as “inhuman” and “unacceptable” in a telephone call with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, the semi-official Anatolian News Agency reported, but gave no further details of the conversation.
Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu called the attacks “a crime against humanity.”
