Syria returns Légion d'honneur award to France

Syria has returned the prestigious Légion d'honneur, bestowed by France to President Bashar al-Assad, saying he would not wear the award of a country that was a "slave" to America. It comes days after French President Emmanuel Macron said a "disciplinary procedure" for withdrawing the award was underway. The award was returned to France via the Romanian embassy in Damascus.France joined the US and the UK in launching airstrikes at chemical weapons facilities in government-held Syria, following the alleged use of poison gas on citizens in a rebel-held enclave outside Syria's capital. France grants the Légion d'honneur to around 3,000 people a year, including 400 foreigners recognised for their "services rendered to France" or for defending human rights, press freedom or other causes.