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            Former Weapons Inspector Sees Disturbing Trend in Syria

   by Andre de Nesnera

   ''A United Nations group and some individual countries are collecting
   evidence trying to determine whether chemical weapons have been used in
   Syria.
   Damascus is believed to have one of the world's largest chemical
   weapons arsenals, including mustard gas, the more modern sarin and even
   VX - the most toxic of all chemical weapons.
   Charles Duelfer, a former head of the Iraq Survey Group that
   investigated the extent of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, said
   Syria has about five or six key locations where the chemical weapons
   are stockpiled. But he notices a disturbing trend.
   "As this war goes on, the control over these sites has dissipated and
   the evidence seems to be suggesting that some of the stockpiles have
   been moved around," he said. "That, of course, makes the potential for
   the dispersal of these agents into various hands more likely and more
   dangerous."
   Who has used chemical weapons in Syria?
   Recently, there have been claims and counterclaims of chemical weapons
   use in Syria.
   The Syrian government has accused opposition forces of using sarin. But
   several western countries, as well as Israel and Turkey, have charged
   that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has used small amounts of
   chemical weapons against rebel forces.
   That evidence, said Duelfer, essentially came from the examination of
   alleged victims of chemical weapons use.
   "There have been a lot of people who have been brought to Turkey, that
   have been examined by doctors. Their symptoms parallel the symptoms of
   being exposed to a nerve agent," he said.
   "To a lesser extent, I think there are samples, environmental samples -
   soil samples, agricultural samples - things like that," said Duelfer.
   "However, one of the downsides, if it can be considered a downside of
   sarin, is that it tends to dissipate fairly quickly. And so over time,
   the confidence and the indisputable nature of the evidence can
   attenuate [weaken]."
   The United States has taken a cautious approach, saying there must be a
   full investigation of chemical weapons use in Syria.
   United Nations investigates
   United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has named Swedish
   scientist Ake Sellstrom to head an international team to do just that.
   Sellstrom is an experienced investigator, having worked at the U.N.
   special commission on Iraq.
   However Duelfer said Sellstrom is hindered in his investigation because
   the Syrian government has, up to now, denied him full access anywhere
   in the country.
   "I still feel very strongly that the United Nations should have a team
   on the ground," said Duelfer. "There ought to be some party with their
   major interest being the truth of the matter - none of the other
   parties have necessarily a strict interest in the truth."
   Duelfer said Sellstrom finds himself in a difficult situation.
   "Like so many of these things, it's at the intersection of physical
   science and political science. The physical scientist can get chewed up
   and spit out in the world of political science, where truth is quite a
   relative term," said Duelfer. "So the credibility of his report and
   ability to perform will be determined by the access that the
   politicians will be able to negotiate for him. And the
   secretary-general. Ban Ki-moon, is going to have to be pretty firm with
   the [Syrian] government. Otherwise, a very limited inspection may be
   worse than no inspection at all."
   U.N. mandate limited
   In addition, Duelfer said Sellstrom's U.N. mandate does not include
   finding out "who" has used chemical weapons.
   "It is a much more difficult, and also politically much more important
   question, to find out what was the return address on this. And that can
   be extremely difficult," said Duelfer. "But as a technical expert, his
   goal, as given to him by the secretary-general, is simply to find out
   if these chemical agents have in fact been used."
   Sellstrom is currently gathering evidence on the use of chemical
   weapons in Syria outside that country, while he and his team wait for a
   possible green light from the Syrian government giving them full access
   inside the country.
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   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/former-weapons-inspector-sees-disturb
   ing-trend-in-syria/1662600.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/former-weapons-inspector-sees-disturbing-trend-in-syria/1662600.html