Suspect charged after Vancouver car ramming leaves 11 dead    Suspect in killing of general claims he was paid by Ukraine    North Korea confirms troop deployment to Russia for first time    Rock & Roll Hall of Fame picks Outkast but not Oasis    400-800 year old giant coral colony discovered within AMAALA waters in the Red Sea    Makkah police arrest Yemeni and Egyptian suspects of fake Hajj campaign    Kafalah grants 1,900 loan guarantees worth over SR4.8 billion to SMEs during 1Q 2025    Council of Senior Scholars reaffirms performing Hajj without a permit is a sinful act    HR Ministry launches 'Ajeer Al-Hajj' service for seasonal work during Hajj 2025    stc reports strong first-quarter 2025 results with 11% rise in net profit    King and Crown Prince offer condolence to Iranian president over the deadly port explosion    Saudi Awwal Bank records SR2.1 billion net profit after zakat and income tax for 1Q25    Virgin Atlantic celebrates one month of nonstop service between London and Riyadh    Al Ahli cruise past Buriram into AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Duran leads Al Nassr past Yokohama Marinos into AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Saudi orchestra to perform at Sydney Opera House in May    Al Hilal thrash Gwangju to reach AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Saudi Theater Commission launches its Work and Learn Project in UK    The season has begun — and one comment shook us all    Average life expectancy in Saudi Arabia rises to78.8 years    Pakistani star's Bollywood return excites fans and riles far right    Veteran Bollywood actor Manoj Kumar dies at 87    Bollywood actress vindicated over boyfriend's death after media hounding    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



UN experts discover sarin exposure in Syrian attack
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 25 - 05 - 2017

A team from the international chemical weapons watchdog found exposure "to sarin or a sarin-like substance" in samples from an April 4 attack in northern Syria that killed over 90 people and now wants to visit the opposition-held town of Khan Sheikhoun, a senior UN official said Tuesday.
UN disarmament chief Izumi Nakamitsu told the UN Security Council that the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons also submitted a report into the alleged use of chemical weapons near Um Hosh in the Aleppo countryside on Sept. 16, 2016 which indicated the use of "sulfur mustard."
OPCW fact-finding teams have been investigating the alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria but aren't mandated to determine responsibility for attacks. That has been left to a joint UN-OPCW investigative body known as the JIM.
Last year, the JIM concluded that the Syrian government used chlorine gas in three attacks and Daesh (the so-called IS) extremists used mustard gas in one attack during 2014 and 2015.
Nakamitsu said the two latest reports from the OPCW fact-finding team have been sent to the JIM, which is now studying the findings "and will keep the Security Council informed of its next steps."
Syria agreed to destroy its chemical weapons under a deal brokered by Russia and the United States in 2013 and declared a 1,300-ton chemical arsenal when it joined the OPCW soon after.
That stockpile has been destroyed, but the organization continues to question whether Damascus declared everything in its chemical weapon program.
Nakamitsu said work to address unresolved issues related to Syria's declaration had been expected to move forward during high-level consultations scheduled for early May, but they have been temporarily postponed.
The Syrian government has repeatedly denied using chemical weapons and so has its close ally Russia, which has also carried out aerial attacks.
In the attack in the area of Um Hosh last Sept. 16, Nakamitsu said an OPCW team was deployed at the request of the Syrian government but wasn't able to visit the site.
She said a review of blood samples from two women victims of the alleged attack indicated exposure to sulfur mustard. The team also evaluated a mortar reported to be connected to the incident that was handed over by Russian experts, she said, and "laboratory analysis indicated that this mortar contained sulfur mustard."
As for Khan Sheikhoun, Nakamitsu said the fact-finding mission's report said their team conducted interviews with victims of the alleged attack and witnessed the collection of biomedical samples from casualties in an unidentified neighboring country.
The team also received samples from dead animals reported to have been close to the site of the incident and environmental samples "from close to the impact point," she said.
It also attended autopsies of three victims and witnessed biomedical samples being taken from their bodies.
Nakamitsu said there is still work to be done in the Khan Sheikhoun investigation and OPCW Director-General Ahmet Uzumcu requested UN security, logistical and operational assistance for a visit to the town by the team. She said Secretary-General Antonio Guterres responded positively on May 4 and indicated that planning is under way.
Nakamitsu said she is in contact with Uzumcu to help ensure that any visit to the site "would be accompanied by the most stringent security assurances." – AP


Clic here to read the story from its source.