President Bashar al-Assad Gives First Interview Since Syria Airstrikes

BEEN WORKING FOR, THIS BREAKING NEWS WITH SYRIAN PRESIDENT
BASHAR AL ASSAD SPEAKING FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE PRESIDENT TRUMP
LAUNCHED THAT MISSILE ATTACK LAST WEEK.
HE SAYS THAT THE CHEMICAL ATTACK THAT PROMPTED IT WAS A 100%
FABRICATION. LET'S TAKE A LISTEN RIGHT NOW.
>> IT'S NOT CLEAR WHETHER IT HAPPENED OR NOT.
YOU HAVE A LOT OF FAKE VIDEOS NOW AND YOU HAVE THE PROOF THAT
THOSE VIDEOS WERE FAKE. THEY'RE AL QAEDA WHO WEAR
WORLDWIDE HATS AND APPEARED AS HUMANITARIAN HEROS, WHICH IS NOT
THE CASE. THE SAME PEOPLE WERE KILLING
SYRIAN SOLDIERS AND YOU HAVE THE PROOF ON THE INTERNET.
SO THE SAME THING FOR THAT CHEMICAL ATTACK, WE DON'T KNOW
WHETHER THOSE DEAD, THE CHILDREN, WERE THEY DEAD AT ALL?
WHO COMMITTED THE ATTACK IF THERE WAS ATTACK?
WHAT MATERIAL? YOU HAVE NO INFORMATION AT ALL.
NOTHING AT ALL. NO INVESTIGATOR.
>> YOU'RE SAYING IT'S A FABRICATION?
>> DEFINITELY. 100% FOR US IT'S FABRICATION.
WE DON'T HAVE ARSENAL AND WE'RE NOT GOING TO USE IT AND YOU HAVE
MANY INDICATIONS IF YOU HAVE NO PROOF BECAUSE NO ONE HAS
CONCRETE EVIDENCE, BUT YOU HAVE INDICATIONS.
FOR EXAMPLE, LESS THAN TWO WEEKS -- AROUND TEN DAYS BEFORE
THAT ATTACK, THE TERRORISTS WERE ADVANCING ON MANY FRONTS,
INCLUDING DAMASCUS. LET'S SUPPOSE WE HAVE THIS
ARSENAL AND LET'S SUPPOSE THAT WE HAVE THE WILL TO USE IT, WHY
DON'T WE USE IT WHEN THEY WERE ADVANCING.
ACTUALLY, THE TIMING OF THAT ATTACK OR ALLEGED ATTACK WAS
WHEN THE SYRIAN ARMY WAS ADVANCING VERY FAST AND ACTUALLY
THE TERRORISTS WERE COLLAPSING. SO WHY TO USE IT IF YOU HAVE IT,
WHY TO USE IT AT THAT TIMING, NOT WHEN YOU ARE IN A DIFFICULT
SITUATION? LOGICALLY, FOR A SECOND, IF YOU
WANT TO USE AND IF YOU WANT TO USE IT, AGAIN, IF WE SUPPOSE,
WHY USE IT AGAINST CIVILIANS AND NOT USE IT AGAINST THE
TERRORISTS WE ARE FIGHTING? THIRD, IN THAT AREA WE DON'T
HAVE ARMY. WE DON'T HAVE ANY OBJECT AND
IT'S NOT STRATEGIC AREA. WHY TO ATTACK IT?
WHAT REASON? MILITARILY.
I'M TALKING ABOUT MILITARILY FROM A MILITARILY POINT OF VIEW.
OF COURSE, THE FOUNDATION FOR US MORALLY WE WOULDN'T DO IT IF WE
HAVE IT. WE WOULDN'T HAVE THE WILL
BECAUSE MORALLY IT'S NOT ACCEPTABLE.
WE WON'T HAVE THE SUPPORT OF THE PUBLIC.
EVERY INDICATION IS AGAINST THE WHOLE STORY.
WE CAN SAY THAT THIS PLAY THAT THEY STAGED DOESN'T HOLD
TOGETHER. THE STORY IS NOT CONVINCING BY
ANY MEANS. >> WITH THE USS AIR STRIKE TRUMP
SEEMS TO HAVE CHANGED HIS POSITION ON SYRIA DRASTICALLY.
DO YOU HAVE THE FEELING THAT YOU LOST WHAT YOU HAVE CALLED A
POTENTIAL PARTNER? >> I SAID IF IT WAS CONDITIONAL.
>> YEAH. >> IF THEY ARE SERIOUS IN
FIGHTING TERRORISTS, WE'RE GOING TO BE PARTNERS.
NOT ONLY THE UNITED STATES. WHOEVER WANTS TO FIGHT THE
TERRORISTS, WE ARE PARTNER. THIS IS BASIC FOR US, BASIC
PRINCIPAL LET'S SAY. ACTUALLY, WHAT HAS BEEN PROVEN
RECENTLY AS I SAID EARLIER, THE LAWS WITH THOSE TERRORISTS.
THE UNITED STATES AND THE WEST ARE NOT SERIOUS IN FIGHTING THE
TERRORISTS AND YESTERDAY SOME OF THEIR STATEMENTS WERE DEFENDING
ISIS. THEY WERE SAYING THAT ISIS
DOESN'T HAVE CHEMICAL WEAPONS. THEY ARE DEFENDING ISIS AGAINST
THE SYRIAN GOVERNMENT AND THE SYRIAN ARMY.
ACTUALLY YOU CANNOT TALK ABOUT PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN US, WHO WORK
AGAINST THE TERRORISTS AND FIGHT THE TERRORISM, AND THE OTHERS
WHO ARE SUPPORTING EXPLICITLY THE TERRORISTS.
>> WOW, THAT WAS EXTRAORDINARY. I WANT TO BRING IN CHIEF FOREIGN
CORRESPONDENT. WE EXPECTED BASHAR AL ASSAD TO
COME OUT AND SAY I DID THIS, DEAL WITH IT, BUT HE SAID
BASICALLY WERE THE CHILDREN EVEN DEAD AT ALL?
THERE ARE A LOT OF FAKE VIDEOS OUT THERE.
THERE'S ABSOLUTELY NO EVIDENCE. IF WE'RE TO BELIEVE HIM, WE'RE
TO BELIEVE, I SUPPOSE, RICHARD, THAT MUCH OF THE WORLD HAS BEEN
DUPED BY THIS. WHAT DO YOU TAKE AWAY FROM IT?
>> Reporter: HE WAS SAYING THAT. HE WAS SAYS THAT THIS IS ALL A
FABRICATION, THAT THE VIDEOS ARE NOT REAL, THAT THERE ARE A LOT
OF FAKE VIDEOS AND THIS WAS A MANIPULATION BY A TERRORIST
GROUP AND I WAS STRUCK BY THE SAME THAT HE SAYS MAYBE THE
CHILDREN IN THE VIDEOS WEREN'T EVEN DEAD AT ALL.
IT WOULD BE VERY HARD TO CONVINCE CHILDREN TO PLAY DEAD.
I CAN'T IMAGINE HOW ANYONE WOULD MANIPULATE THAT.
YOU HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THE CONTEXT.
THE PROVINCE WHERE THIS ATTACK TOOK PLACE IS IN REBEL HANDS.
A LOT OF REBELS IN THAT GROUP ARE OR WERE ASSOCIATED WITH AL
QAEDA. SO FROM THE U.S. PERSPECTIVE AND
FROM CERTAINLY THE SYRIAN REGIME PERSPECTIVE THAT IS AN AREA IT
CONSIDERS IN TERRORIST HANDS. THE PEOPLE WHO WERE KILLED BY
ALL ACCOUNTS AND IF YOU LOOK AT THE VIDEO, ALTHOUGH BASHAR AL
ASSAD IS QUESTIONING IF THEY WERE KILLED AT ALL, THEY WERE
CIVILIANS WHO HAPPENED TO LIVE IN THAT AREA.
IF YOU LISTEN TO WHAT BASHAR AL ASSAD SAYS AND HE'S BEEN SAYING
THIS AND HIS REGIME HAVE BEEN SAYING THIS FOR YEARS, THAT HE
IS A FORCE AGAINST TERRORISTS AND THE WORLD SHOULD LINE UP
BEHIND HIM BECAUSE ONLY THROUGH HIS LEADERSHIP AND HIS MILITARY
CAMPAIGN WILL SYRIA RID ITSELF OF THIS SCOURGE OF TERRORISTS.
THE U.S. POSITION AND THE INTERNATIONAL POSITION SAVE THE
POSITIONS OF RUSSIA AND IRAN IS THAT ASSAD IS PART OF THE
PROBLEM BECAUSE HE'S USING SUCH BRUTALITY AND IT ALLOWS
TERRORISTS TO FIND GROUND. A DENIAL.
HE CAME OUT AND SAID IT WAS FAKE AND MAYBE THE KIDS WEREN'T DEAD
AND IF WE DID HAVE CHEMICAL WEAPONS, IT WOULDN'T MAKE SENSE

President Bashar al-Assad Gives First Interview Since Syria Airstrikes | MSNBC

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