Obama to demand Syria's Assad removal at UN speech
US President Barack Obama will use his Tuesday's address to the United Nations in New York to demand that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad step down, according to US officials. ● White House spokesman Ben Rhodes told reporters on Friday that Obama's speech will also focus on the need for a tough resolution demanding Syria turn over its chemical weapons or face a threat of force. Obama will urge “the international community to stand up to the use of chemical weapons,” Rhodes said. US Secretary of State John Kerry also said Thursday the UN Security Council must be prepared to act on Syria’s chemical weapons program next week. "Now the test comes. The Security Council must be prepared to act next week. It is vital for the international community to stand up and speak out," said Kerry who will join world leaders for the annual UN General Assembly in New York on Sunday. Washington has claimed that the Syrian government is responsible for a chemical attack near Damascus on August 21.
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