Bashar Assad: 'Syria Will Defend Itself'
Bashar Assad : ' Syria Will Defend Itself' By ALBERT AJI and KARIN LAUB DAMASCUS, Syria — Syrian President Bashar Assad said Thursday that his country "will defend itself against any aggression," signaling defiance to mounting Western warnings of a possible punitive strike over a suspected poison gas attack blamed on his regime. U.N. chemical weapons inspectors toured stricken rebel-held areas near the Syrian capital of Damascus for a third day Thursday, ahead of a weekend departure that could clear the path for military action against Syria.
