Russia’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) said on Friday that the US State Department has finally admitted that the Nusra Front terrorist group “not only has, but uses chemical weapons against civilians.”

“The Hayat Tahrir al-Sham terrorist group (HTS), linked to Jabhat al-Nusra, which uses ‘small and heavy arms, improvised explosive devices, and chemical weapons’, operates in that province [Idlib]. This is the first official recognition by the [US] State Department not simply of the presence, but, I emphasize, the use of chemical weapons by Jabhat al-Nusra terrorists in that part of Syria to commit terrorist attacks, about which we repeatedly warned,” Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Konashenkov said, referring to Nusra Front, which controls Idlib province.

Igor Konashenkov also recalled that in Idlib province, “only one case of the use of chemical weapons is known — in Khan-Sheikhun.”

“However, the US accused government troops of [conducting] this chemical attack. And those who [actually] organized it, they called a “moderate opposition,” Konashenkov said.

Igor Konashenkov stressed that “as for the alleged Russian Air Force bombing in the city of Idlib, the State Department here is mistaken and American citizens have nothing to fear. The Russian aircraft operating in Syria does not strike settlements, in contrast to the US and the coalition.”

Source: Sputnik