Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday that samples collected by first responders after the reported August 21 chemical weapons attack in Syria have tested positive for the nerve agent sarin.
"In the last 24 hours, we have learned through samples that were provided to the United States that have now been tested from first responders in east Damascus and hair samples and blood samples have tested positive for signatures of sarin," Kerry said on NBC's Meet The Press. "So this case is building and this case will build."
Secretary of State John Kerry [said] that all signs suggest that Syrian leader Bashar Assad used the nerve agent in his alleged chemical weapons attack. Kerry said the use of chemical weapons puts Syrian President Bashar Assad in the same category as the world's most bloody dictators. "Bashar Assad now joins the list of Adolf Hitler and Saddam Hussein [who] have used these weapons in time of war," he said.
| You might recall, Mr. Secretary, that you voted against going after Saddam. |
The former Massachusetts senator said Sunday that he believes Congress will pass a measure to authorize the use of force in Syria.
"I don't believe that my former colleagues in the United States Senate and the House will turn their backs on all of our interests, on the credibility of our country, on the norm with respect to the enforcement of the prohibition against the use of chemical weapons, which has been in place since 1925," he said.
| Apparently Syria is not signatory to that treaty, and therefore it does not apply. Also, it only applies, as I understand it, to warring nations, not to civil wars within a nation. You have a law degree, Mr. Secretary, though you did not get into Harvard despite your family connections. Perhaps you might consider actually applying your hard-won skills. |
But Kerry would not say whether the president would act even if Congress votes against intervention. "I said that the president has the authority to act, but the Congress is going to do what's right here," he answered when pressed. |