Beirut: A prominent Saudi scholar has decried muted Arab reactions to this week's suspected chemical attack in Syria's northern Idlib province.
Dozens of civilians were killed and hundreds injured in a chemical attack allegedly carried out by regime forces in the northern town of Khan Shaykhun on Tuesday. In response, the US early Friday fired 59 Tomahawk missiles at a Syrian regime military airbase American officials believe was used to carry out the attack.
"The UN and Arab community stood idly by. They did nothing but condemned the massacre," Salman Al Awdah told Anadolu Agency.
"While Arab people took to social media to denounce the massacre, politicians and prominent figures of society remained silent," he said.
The Saudi scholar went on to call for taking a "deterrent response" against those responsible for the chemical attack on civilians in Khan Shaykhun.
"He who remains silent in the face of injustice is a tongueless devil," he said, going on to call on Arab politicians, writers and thinkers to "make everyone aware of this massacre, which is supported by Iran and Russia".
"Keeping silent to the massacre in Idlib is equal to being part of it," he said.
Lebanese MP Imad Al Hut said the Arab people were angry with the recent massacre in Idlib.
"Their reaction, however, was muted due to the ongoing bloodshed in Syria, which has caused to harden their hearts," he said. Syria has been locked in a vicious civil war since early 2011, when the Bashar Al Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests — which erupted as part of the Arab Spring uprisings — with unexpected ferocity.
