Iran sees ambiguities in OPCW report on chemical attack in Syria

July 8, 2017 - 20:35

TEHRAN – An Iranian delegation attending an extraordinary meeting of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in The Hague believes that there are ambiguities in a report provided on a chemical attack on Syria’s Khan Sheikhoun region, ISNA reported on Saturday.

The chemical attack took place on April 4, 2017 on the town of Khan Shaykhun in the Idlib province of Syria. 

The U.S. claimed the attack was carried out by the Syrian government and on April 7 fired 59 cruise missiles at Shayrat airbase, where it said a Syrian fighter took off to drop the chemical weapon.

“The fact-finding committee’s report on Syria’s Khan Sheikhoun attack contains some ambiguities about sources, way of receiving information, sampling without visiting the place where the attack was carried out,” the delegation stated.

“We hope that ambiguities in this report would be clarified with the cooperation of the Syrian government,” it added.

The Syrian government has announced readiness to cooperate with the OPCW to send a fact-finding committee to Khan Sheikhoun and al-Shayrat airbase; however, certain countries have refrained from dispatching a team and just agreed to “indirect sources” and samples, the Iranian team added.

Alexander Shulgin, Russia’s permanent envoy to the OPCW, said on Thursday that Russia insists on a visit by a team of international investigators to the city of Khan Shaykhun and the Shayrat airbase in Syria.

NA/PA

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