26 August 2013 — Press TV

A political commentator says the United States is fabricating pretexts to justify its potential military intervention in the Syrian crisis, Press TV reports.

In an article published on Press TV website on Sunday, American activist and author, David Swanson, described the recent threats issued by Washington regarding a potential military intervention in Syria as “immoral” and “illegal” under the United Nations Charter.

“Threatening to attack Syria, and moving ships into position to do it, are significant, and illegal, and immoral actions,” wrote Swanson.

On August 23, US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said the Pentagon was positioning naval forces and assets as part of “contingency options” provided to President Barack Obama regarding Syria.

Hagel repeated similar remarks during a Sunday visit to Malaysia, saying the Obama administration is still weighing the question of whether to use military force in Syria in response to the alleged use of chemical weapons in the violence-stricken country.

The analyst further stated, “The president can claim not to have decided to push the button, but he can’t pretend that all the preparations to do so just happen like the weather.”

“The more he [Obama] explains why it would be wrong and illegal and stupid and immoral to attack Syria, the more you can be sure he’s about to do just that.”

On August 21, the head of the so-called Syrian National Coalition, George Sabra, claimed that 1,300 people were killed in a government chemical attack on militant strongholds in Damascus suburbs of Ain Tarma, Zamalka and Jobar.

However, the Syrian government vehemently dismissed the baseless claim, saying the new accusation was fabricated to distract the visiting team of UN chemical weapons experts and to cover up militants losses.

Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since 2011. According to reports, Western powers and their regional allies, especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey, are supporting the militants operating inside Syria.