Head of UN chemical weapons watchdog to meet Syrian leader

DAMASCUS: The head of the world’s chemical weapons watchdog will meet Syria’s new leader Saturday, in a first visit since the ouster of Bashar al-Assad, who was repeatedly accused of using such weapons during Syria’s 13-year civil war.

“We will broadcast the President of the Syrian Arab Republic Ahmad al-Sharaa and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Asaad Al-Shaibani receiving a delegation from the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)”, an official Syrian Telegram channel said in a statement.

The statement said the delegation was headed by OPCW chief Fernanado Arias.

In 2013, Syria agreed to join the OPCW shortly after a suspected chemical gas attack killed more than 1,000 people near Damascus.

It handed over its declared stockpile for destruction, but the OPCW has always been concerned that the declaration made by Damascus was incomplete and that more weapons remained.

Assad’s government denied using chemical weapons.

But in 2014, the OPCW set up what it called a “fact-finding mission” to investigate chemical weapons use in Syria, subsequently issuing 21 reports covering 74 instances of alleged chemical weapons use.

Investigators concluded that chemical weapons were used or likely used in 20 instances.