White House Accuses Russia of Cover-Up in Syria Chemical Weapons Attack

The White House on Tuesday accused Russia of helping to cover up the chemical weapons attack in Syria last week, which was determined by U.S. intelligence and foreign governments to be a sarin gas attack carried out by the Bashar al-Assad regime. A declassified report released on Tuesday says Russia and Syria have pushed “false narratives” about the attack, which caused President Donald Trump to authorize airstrikes against a Syrian air base. White House officials declined to comment on whether Russia knew of the chemical attack in advance, but said the Kremlin was engaging in cover-up. The new report comes as Secretary of State Rex Tillerson arrives in Moscow, where he will not meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin.