Qatar calls for independent probe into chemical attack

Al Jazeera - Qatar joined Russia and its allies in demanding an independent investigation into a chemical weapon attack in Syria that killed more than 80 people, saying the perpetrators must be punished to prevent future use of poison gas.

The foreign ministers of Russia, Sergey Lavrov, and Qatar, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, met on Saturday in Moscow for talks on Syria's six-year war.

The poison gas attack on a rebel-held town in Idlib province earlier this month was a point of discussion. Images and video published shortly after the incident showed dozens of men, women, and children gasping for air, convulsing, and foaming at the mouth.

"The meeting saw the two sides agree on the importance of holding an independent investigation into the chemical attacks that took place in Khan Sheikhoun in Syria," the official Qatar News Agency (QNA) reported.

The US has blamed Syria's government for the deadly gas attack, and launched a barrage of Tomahawk cruise missiles against a government-controlled airbase in response.  

Syria's government says it had nothing to do with the bloodshed in Khan Sheikhoun, and staunch ally Russia has stood by those claims.

Russia blocked a UN Security Council resolution on Wednesday that demanded Syria cooperate with an investigation by the UN's chemical weapons watchdog, saying the probe should be widened to include experts from many nations.

Qatar is a leading backer of rebels fighting Syria's President Bashar al-Assad, who has received key military and diplomatic support from Russia during the war that has killed hundreds of thousands.