The White House confirmed today that at least 1429 people were killed, including 426 children, among other details today.
Secretary of State John Kerry addressed the media in the White House Treaty Signing room today, announcing the declassification of documents displaying proof of the chemical weapons attacks in Syria. Kerry said that the information being released to the public, while convincing, does not contain all of the details. Those omitted details are being presented to members of Congress. Here is the document in full text:
Here is a map that has been released to go along with the document:
“Read for yourselves the evidence from thousands of sources,” Mr. Kerry said. “This is the indiscriminate, inconceivable horror of chemical weapons. This is what Assad did to his own people.”
Kerry warned the public of the “risk of doing nothing” in regards to Syrian President Assad’s use of chemical weapons. The Secretary of State questioned whether Iran would continue and ramp up their nuclear weapons program if they see that the U.S. does not follow through on their threats.
Senior officials say intelligence report on Syria CW attack "fully vetted" by entire U.S. intelligence committee and "fully sourced."
— Major Garrett (@MajorCBS) August 30, 2013
U.S. officials: U.S. assessment is preliminary on number of dead. The number could rise.
— Andrew Kaczynski (@BuzzFeedAndrew) August 30, 2013
Here is the full-text of John Kerry’s address:
Kerry referred to Assad as a “thug and a murderer” during today’s address, which bring this photo back to the forefront:
When Kerry had dinner with Assad a few years ago. http://t.co/TfCBFW5wNw pic.twitter.com/LMAeFPrbDE
— Andrew Kaczynski (@BuzzFeedAndrew) August 26, 2013
Today’s address comes just four days after Kerry first held a press conference confirming the alleged chemical weapons attack in Syria. Referring to the attack as “undeniable,” Kerry also said that the Syrian regime attempted to destroy evidence of the chemical shelling.
“While investigators are gathering additional information on the ground, our understanding of what has already happened in Syria is grounded in facts, informed by conscious and guided by common sense. The reported number of victims, the reported symptoms of those who were killed or injured, the first hand accounts from the humanitarian organizations on the ground […] these all strongly indicate that everything these images are already screaming at us are real: that chemical weapons were used in Syria. We know that the Syrian regime maintains custody of these chemical weapons,” said Kerry.
The Washington Post called Kerry’s statement a “war speech.”