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French were 'hours' from military strikes on Syria before phone call from Obama

'Stunned' French president François Hollande called off military attack after US president said he was to seek Congress approval.

La rédaction de Mediapart

30 September 2013 à 09h45

This article is freely available.

French President Francois Hollande called off military strikes against Syria on 31 August following a phone call from the US President only hours before fighter jets were set to take off, a French weekly magazine has revealed, reports The Independent.

The report in the Nouvel Observateur shows how close the West came to launching a war on Syria over the Syrian regime’s presumed use of chemical weapons in a Damascus suburb, before Washington backed down.

President Obama announced in a televised speech on 31 August, after informing a “stunned” Mr Hollande, that he would seek a Congressional vote, effectively lifting the military threat.

Read more of this report from The Independent.

La rédaction de Mediapart

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