Syria Crisis: Egypt, China, Russia reject foreign military intervention as UK, Turkey, USA hint of intervention without UN approval
Egypt’s Foreign Ministry has joined China and Russia in warning against a military intervention in Syria, after claims that Assad’s regime used (chemical) gas in a recent attack that reportedly killed ‘hundreds’.
The Foreign Ministry stated that it is opposed to external military intervention and would instead back political means to end the crisis. Egypt also stated that its senior military leaders would not attend a session that will be held in Amman with participation of the military chiefs of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, and Canada.
The announcement comes as the United Kingdom, Turkey, and the USA stated that they would not hesitate to intervene in Syria without UN approval due to the use of chemical weapons by the Assad regime. The French Foreign Minister added that in “certain circumstances” the UN Security Council’s approval can be bypassed.
The war-drums come as a UN inspection team is in Syria to ascertain whether chemical weapons had been used by either the Syrian government or the rebels. Earlier today, snipers opened fire on a convoy of UN inspectors that were heading to the sites of suspected chemical weapons attacks, forcing them back to a government checkpoint.
[Photo: A child holds a sign reading “If Syrian children were bleeding oil instead of blood, the whole world would have stepped in immediately”]
