Theresa May demands investigation into suspected chemical attack in Syria which has left 58 dead so far
THERESA MAY has called for an investigation into a chemical attack in Syria that has left at least 58 people dead - including 11 children.
The airstrikes took place in the town of Khan Sheikhoun, in the central province of Idlib, early this morning.
The Prime Minister said on a trip to the Middle East that if the Syrian government were proven to be behind the attack, it would be more evidence of its "barbarism".
And she ruled President Bashar al-Assad out playing a role in the future of Syria.
"I'm very clear that there can be no future for Assad in a stable Syria which is representative of all the Syrian people," she said today. "And I call on all the third parties involved to ensure that we have a transition away from Assad.
"We cannot allow this suffering to continue."
Boris Johnson said earlier today that Assad will be guilty of a "war crime" if proven he is behind the toxic chemical attack.
The Foreign Secretary said: "If this were proved to have been committed by the Assad regime then it would be another reason to think they are an absolutely heinous outfit, it is a war crime.
"Bombing your own civilians with chemical weapons is unquestionably a war crime and they must be held to account."
Boris later tweeted: "Horrific reports of chemical weapons attack in #Idlib #Syria. Incident must be investigated & perpetrators held to account".
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said those killed had died from suffocation and the effects of the gas.
The British-based group said 100 - including 11 children - have now died and 400 others are wounded.
The group claimed the attack caused people to choke or faint, with some reportedly foaming at the mouth in an apparent sign of a gas attack.
The National Coalition has now called on the UN Security Council to "convene an emergency session..., open an immediate investigation and take the necessary measures to ensure the officials, perpetrators and supporters are held accountable".
The statement added: "Failure to do so will be understood as a message of blessing to the regime for its actions."
It accused the "regime of the criminal Bashar" of carrying out the attack, using "shells containing chemical gas";.
The Syrian army could not immediately be reached for comment. Damascus has repeatedly denied using chemical weapons.
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