Tillerson says chemical attack shows how Syria's Assad operates

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson takes part in a NATO foreign ministers meeting at the Alliance's headquarters in Brussels, Belgium March 31, 2017. REUTERS/Virginia Mayo/Pool

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The chemical weapons attack in Syria shows how President Bashar al-Assad operates with "brutal and unabashed barbarism," U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on Tuesday, and called on Russia and Iran to make sure it never happens again. "Those who defend and support him, including Russia and Iran, should have no illusions about Assad or his intentions," Tillerson said in a statement. "Anyone who uses chemical weapons to attack his own people shows a fundamental disregard for human decency and must be held accountable." (Reporting by Lesley Wroughton; Editing by Chris Reese)