The White House’s recent “warning” that Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad is preparing “another chemical-weapons attack” evokes memories of the US making unverified claims to justify unlawful wars elsewhere in the region. Some believe that the Trump administration may be looking to launch another attack to distract from the controversy surrounding its relationship with Russia and low approval ratings.

We must intervene to stop our government from expanding its endless wars.

1. The US has no justification to launch a military attack against Syria under either US or international law. The Chemical Weapons Convention and the United Nations Charter provide lawful procedures and means for investigating and responding to alleged violations of international law, which should be followed.

2. It’s very likely that the Trump Administration launched an airstrike on a Syrian airfield in early April 2017 under false pretenses. Reports citing US military and intelligence officials say that Donald Trump knew there was no credible evidence of al-Assad using sarin gas against his own people, and he authorized a US attack on Syria with 59 cruise missiles, despite being presented with this intelligence. Some officials "were especially distressed by the president's determination to ignore the evidence."

3. Military intervention by foreign governments has only intensified a humanitarian disaster for the people of Syria. According to estimates by humanitarian organizations, between 321,358 and451,358 people have been killed in the Syrian conflict since 2011. Reports say that at least 95,891 of those murdered were civilians. Additionally, 11 million Syrians, almost half of Syria’s pre-war population, have been forced to seek safety and basic human needs elsewhere, having either fled the country or been internally displaced inside Syria.

4. None of the Pentagon’s endless wars have solved the problem of terrorism; all of them have spawned new terror cells and groups increasing the scope and reach of terror attacks across the globe. The President’s ability to make war at will, without institutional or public oversight, has put us all at greater risk and threatened our shared security. With nuclear-armed militaries operating in close proximity in a region beset by several armed conflicts, it is essential that all parties have recourse to these lawful means of resolving disputes.