United Nations Report: Sec. Gen. Ban Ki Moon Confirms 'Unequivocally & Objectively' Chemical Weapons Used in Syria (Video)

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The United Nations Report confirmed "unequivocally and objectively" that chemical weapons were used in Syria, which Secretary General Ban Ki Moon constituted as a "war crime" on Monday, as reported by BBC News.

The UN, however did not attribute blame who used the weapons in the Syrian civil war.

"The report makes for chilling reading," Ban told reporters.

In describing what UN inspectors uncovered in their findings from last month's August 21 chemical attack, the secretary general said "the team gathered testimony from survivors, medical personnel and first responders. They collected biomedical evidence and dozens of soil and environmental samples. The Mission has provided the world with an impartial and independent account," he added.

"The results are overwhelming and indisputable. Eighty-five percent of the blood samples tested positive for sarin... A majority of the rockets or rocket fragments recovered were found to be carrying sarin. The findings are beyond doubt and beyond the pale.

This is a war crime and a grave violation of the 1925 Protocol and other rules of customary international law. It is the most significant confirmed use of chemical weapons against civilians since Saddam Hussein used them in Halabja in 1988 - and the worst use of weapons of mass destruction in the 21st century. The international community has a responsibility to ensure that chemical weapons never re-emerge as an instrument of warfare... 

Ban added that it was "others to decide" if he knew who was behind the attack and how that party should be punished, news reports said. " do not have a clear answer at this time," he said.

U.S. Ambassador to the UN Samantha Power said, "the technical details make it clear that only the regime could have carried out this large-scale attack," UK Foreign Secretary William Hague added that "the Syrian regime is the only party that could have been responsible."

After the Russian-U.S. deal just a few days ago, which seeks to dismantle Bashar al-Assad's chemical weapons, the US, UK and France said they were seeking a "strong" UN resolution with "serious consequences" if the Syrian government does not comply, along with a "precise timetable,"BBC News reported.

Even as the UN Security Council is expected to draft a resolution in the coming days, Russia, Syria's chief weapons supplier, and a Permanant Security Council member, remained adamant that his country will veto any resolution containing any language which even hints at the threat of military force.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who only days ago agreed to the deal with U.S. Secretary of State Kerry said, "our American colleagues would very much like there to be a Chapter VII resolution [which could enable the use of force].

"But the final declaration, the final document that we approved and which has the guiding principles for how we proceed and for our mutual obligations, makes no mention of it," Lavrov added.

Over 100,000 people have been killed in the Syrian civil war, according to UN estimates.

Tags
Syrian Civil War, United Nations Charter, International Law, Bashar al-Assad
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