The United States intercepted communications between the Syrian military and chemical weapons experts ahead of a sarin gas attack that left dozens of civilians dead last week, according to a report Wednesday evening.
According to CNN, a senior U.S. official said the military and intelligence community picked up on the discussion about the chemical weapons attack as part of a review effort to confirm whether Syrian President Bashar Assad was behind the attack amid the country’s six-year-plus civil war. The official emphasized that the U.S. was unaware of the chemical weapons plot before the attack happened.
Days after the attack President Trump launched a cruise missile strike against the airfield believed to be where the chemical weapons attack originated.
Defense officials said Russia, an ally of Assad, was notified of the missile strike before it began. The report Wednesday said there is no evidence to suggest Russian military or intelligence officials were in contact with Syria about the sarin gas attack.
U.S. officials have already said there is “no doubt” that Assad was responsible. Both Syria and Russia have denied being complicit in the attack.
