DISINFO: Douma doctors confirm that there was no chemical attack
SUMMARY
The Russian Conflict Reconciliation Center claim that Syrian doctors said they did not deal with any cases of patients with signs of chemical poisoning. Also, the rescue driver said: “From 6th to 8th April, we did not have a patient suffering from chemical poisoning. Just ordinary war wounds. “
RESPONSE
In a joint Statement by Australia, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America called for an end to such unacceptable Russian defamation of the OPCW. They also called the so-called information meeting at OPCW headquarters that Russia held 'nothing more than a crude propaganda exercise'. nl.ambafrance.org/Syria-OPCW-Joint-Statement-26-april-2018, There are several reports that Syrian doctors are forced under pressure and threat to say that the chemical attack has not occurred. Interview with one of the witnesses took place at a Syrian army facility used by Russian military advisers. www.theguardian.com/world/2018/apr/26/obscene-masquerade-russia-criticised-over-douma-chemical-attack-denial, , theintercept.com/2018/04/26/russia-brings-syrians-hague-make-underwhelming-case-chemical-attack-fake/, , www.theguardian.com/world/2018/apr/17/syria-crisis-medics-intimidated-over-douma-gas-attack, See our timeline of the ongoing pro-Kremlin disinformation campaign surrounding the Salisbury poisoning and the Douma chemical attack.
For background: On 7 April 2018, a high number of civilians were killed in the besieged Syrian city of Douma, with evidence pointing towards another chemical attack by the regime, according to the EU. See also Bellingcat's open source survey on the suspected chemical attack: https://www.bellingcat.com/news/mena/2018/04/11/open-source-survey-alleged-chemical-attacks-douma-7th-april-2018/ www.bellingcat.com/news/mena/2018/04/29/pieces-matter-syrias-chlorine-bombs-douma-chemical-attack/, On April 10 Russia vetoed a U.S.-drafted U.N. Security Council resolution that would have created a new inquiry to ascertain responsibility for chemical weapons attacks in Syria. UN-OPCW Joint Investigative Mechanism found Syria’s Government responsible for last year’s attack in Khan Shaykhun. In September 2017, the UN Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic summarized 33 separate incidents where it had found use of chemical weapons. Since then there have been several additional suspected chemical attacks. Between March 2013 and March 2017, the Commission documented 25 incidents of chemical weapons use in the Syrian Arab Republic, of which 20 were proven to have been perpetrated by government forces and used primarily against civilians. http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/HRC/IICISyria/Pages/IndependentInternationalCommission.aspx