Pentagon: ‘Active preparations’ for another chemical attack in Syria

The Pentagon reportedly said on Tuesday that the U.S. has observed chemical weapons activity at a Syrian air base used to launch the April chemical attack that left dozens of civilians dead.

Pentagon spokesman Capt. Jeff Davis said that the U.S. has seen “active preparations for chemical weapons use,” according to the Associated Press.

It was not immediately clear if another chemical strike by the Syrian government is imminent, but the last prompted President Trump to launch a missile strike. 

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The White House said in a statement Monday night that the U.S. had identified potential preparations for a chemical strike by the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad, and warned the Syrian government against conducting another attack. 

“As we have previously stated, the United States is in Syria to eliminate the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria,” press secretary Sean Spicer said. “If, however, Mr. Assad conducts another mass murder attack using chemical weapons, he and his military will pay a heavy price.”

Syria’s government as well as Russia, which backs Assad, rejected the White House’s allegations on Tuesday.

A chemical strike allegedly carried out by the Assad regime in April left dozens of civilians dead, many of them children.

That attack prompted President Trump to launch a strike on the Syrian government’s Shayrat airfield, from which the chemical attack was believed to originate.