THE HAGUE, Netherlands —1 March 2019—The Fact-Finding Mission (FFM) of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), issued today the final report on the FFM’s investigation regarding the incident of alleged use of toxic chemicals as a weapon in Douma, Syrian Arab Republic, on 7 April 2018.

The FFM’s activities regarding this allegation included on-site visits to collect environmental samples, conduct witness interviews and gather data. The FFM further analysed a range of inputs including witness testimonies, environmental and biomedical samples analysis results, toxicological and ballistic analyses, and additional digital information from witnesses.

Regarding the alleged use of toxic chemicals as a weapon in Douma, the evaluation and analysis of all the above-referenced information gathered by the FFM provide reasonable grounds that the use of a toxic chemical as a weapon has taken place on 7 April 2018. This toxic chemical contained reactive chlorine. The toxic chemical was likely molecular chlorine.

The FFM’s report on the allegation of chemical weapons use in Douma has been shared with States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention and they will soon receive a briefing at OPCW Headquarters in The Hague. The report was also transmitted to the UN Security Council through the UN Secretary-General.

Background

In response to persistent allegations of chemical weapon attacks in Syria, the OPCW Fact-Finding Mission (FFM) was set up in 2014 with an on-going mandate “to establish facts surrounding allegations of the use of toxic chemicals, reportedly chlorine, for hostile purposes in the Syrian Arab Republic”.

The FFM’s mandate is to determine whether chemical weapons or toxic chemicals as weapons have been used in Syria. It does not include identifying who is responsible for alleged attacks. The FFM is required to study available information relating to allegations of use of chemical weapons in Syria, including information provided by the Syrian Arab Republic and others. The FFM employs investigative methods to determine if chemical weapons have been used. It interviews witnesses and obtains environmental and bio-medical samples and physical evidence for analysis.

Following the Decision on “Addressing the threat from chemical weapons use”, adopted by the Conference of the States Parties at its Special Session in June 2018, the Technical Secretariat is putting in place arrangements to identify the perpetrators of the use of chemical weapons in the Syrian Arab Republic.

On 6 July 2018, the FFM issued an interim report on the investigation regarding the allegations of chemical weapons use in Douma in April 2018.

The FFM has previously determined that the use of chlorine, sulfur mustard, and sarin as chemical weapons took place in other incidents in the Syrian Arab Republic.

The OPCW operates according to a strict confidentiality regime, which governs the operations of the Organisation, protects the integrity of its investigations, ensures the security of its technical experts, and determines what information can be made public.

As the implementing body for the Chemical Weapons Convention, the OPCW, with its 193 Member States, oversees the global endeavour to permanently eliminate chemical weapons. Since the Convention’s entry into force in 1997, with 193 State Parties, it is the most successful disarmament treaty eliminating an entire class of weapons of mass destruction.

Over 96% of all chemical weapon stockpiles declared by possessor States have been destroyed under OPCW verification. For its extensive efforts in eliminating chemical weapons, the OPCW received the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize.

More Information

Note by the Technical Secretariat: Report of the Fact-Finding Mission Regarding the Incident of Alleged Use of Toxic Chemicals as a Weapon in Douma, Syrian Arab Republic, on 7 April 2018

OPCW Issues Fact-Finding Mission Reports on Chemical Weapons Use Allegations in Douma, Syria in 2018 and in Al-Hamadaniya and Karm Al-Tarrab in 2016

Note by the Technical Secretariat: Interim Report on the Progress of the Fact-Finding Mission Regarding an Incident of Alleged Use of Toxic Chemicals as a Weapon in Douma, Syrian Arab Republic, on 7 April 2018

Fact-Finding Mission

OPCW Fact Sheets</s>Chlorine was used in an attack on the Syrian town of Douma in April 2018, although there was no evidence of nerve agent, the world’s chemical weapons watchdog said Friday in a final report on the incident.

The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons said there were “reasonable grounds that the use of a toxic chemical as a weapon has taken place on 7 April 2018. This toxic chemical contained reactive chlorine.”

The long-awaited findings confirmed an interim report released in July on the attack, which medics said killed about 40 people when a cylinder containing poison gas landed on the roof of a housing block.

The report does not place blame because it was not in the OPCW’s remit at the time, although the watchdog has since been given powers to investigate responsibility for all chemical attacks in Syria back to 2014.

A team of OPCW inspectors took more than 100 samples from some seven sites in Douma when they gained access to the town several weeks after the attack.

The team also interviewed witnesses and carried out a series of tests including toxicological and ballistic analysis, said the watchdog based in The Hague.

Russia, which backs the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, swiftly rejected the OPCW report, saying that it was “staged” by Syrian rescue volunteers known as the White Helmets.

“In spite of all the evidence presented by Russia, Syria, and even British journalists that the Douma incident is no more than ‘White helmets’ staged provocation, Technical Secretariat of OPCW states in today’s report that chlorine was used in Douma as a chemical weapon,” the Russian Embassy in The Hague tweeted.</s>Inspectors have concluded that a "toxic chemical" containing chlorine was used in an attack last April in the Syrian town of Douma, at the time held by rebels but besieged by pro-government forces, the global chemical weapons agency says.

The attack on April 7, 2018, killed dozens of civilians and prompted air strikes against the Syrian government by Britain, France and the United States.

Washington blamed the Syrian government and said it had used chemical weapons. Damascus denies having ever used chemical weapons.

During an investigation in mid-April, inspectors from the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons visited two sites in Douma to interview witnesses and take samples, which have been analysed in OPCW-affiliated national laboratories.

The investigation did not assign blame, but the information gathered provided "reasonable grounds that the use of a toxic chemical as a weapon has taken place on 7 April 2018".

"This toxic chemical contained reactive chlorine. The toxic chemical was likely molecular chlorine," the OPCW said in a statement on Friday.

Weaponising chlorine is prohibited under the Chemical Weapons Convention, ratified by Syria in 2013, and is prohibited under customary international humanitarian law.

The OPCW has documented systematic use of the banned nerve agent sarin and chlorine in Syria's civil war, now nearing its eighth year.

From 2015 to 2017 a joint UN-OPCW team had been appointed to assign blame for chemical attacks in Syria. It found that Syrian government troops had used the nerve agent sarin and chorine barrel bombs on several occasions, while Islamic State militants were found to have used sulphur mustard.

In June, the OPCW's member states granted the organisation new powers to assign blame for chemical weapons attacks, but that was not the mandate of the team that carried out the Douma inquiry.

The latest OPCW report "adds one more case to the scores of illegal chemical weapons attacks confirmed since 2013", said Lou Charbonneau of the New York-based Human Rights Watch.

"It's clear that the organisation's new unit for attributing blame for chemical weapons attacks in Syria has its work cut out. Those responsible for the use of these banned weapons should be unmasked and held to account."

The OPCW is also looking into an alleged gas attack last November in Aleppo that reportedly made up to 100 people ill. The Syrian government and its ally, Russia, blamed that attack on insurgents.</s>AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Inspectors have concluded that a “toxic chemical” containing chlorine was used in an attack last April in the Syrian town of Douma, at the time held by rebels but besieged by pro-government forces, the global chemical weapons agency said on Friday.

The attack on April 7 killed dozens of civilians and prompted air strikes against the Syrian government by Britain, France and the United States.

Information gathered by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) provided “reasonable grounds that the use of a toxic chemical as a weapon has taken place on 7 April 2018”.

“This toxic chemical contained reactive chlorine. The toxic chemical was likely molecular chlorine,” the OPCW said in a statement.</s>Inspectors have concluded that a "toxic chemical" containing chlorine was used in an attack last April in the Syrian town of Douma, at the time held by rebels but besieged by pro-government forces, the global chemical weapons agency said on Friday.

The attack on April 7, 2018, killed dozens of civilians and prompted airstrikes against the Syrian government by Britain, France and the United States.

Washington blamed the Syrian government and said it had used chemical weapons. Damascus denies having ever used chemical weapons.

During an investigation in mid-April, inspectors from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) visited two sites in Douma to interview witnesses and take samples, which have been analyzed in OPCW-affiliated laboratories.

The investigation did not assign blame, but the information gathered provided "reasonable grounds that the use of a toxic chemical as a weapon has taken place on 7 April 2018."

"This toxic chemical contained reactive chlorine. The toxic chemical was likely molecular chlorine," the OPCW said in a statement.

Weaponizing chlorine is prohibited under the Chemical Weapons Convention, ratified by Syria in 2013, and is prohibited under customary international humanitarian law.

The OPCW has documented systematic use of the banned nerve agent sarin and chlorine in Syria's civil war, now nearing its eighth year.

From 2015-17 a joint UN-OPCW team had been appointed to assign blame for chemical attacks in Syria. It found that Syrian government troops had used the nerve agent sarin and chorine barrel bombs on several occasions, while Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants were found to have used sulfur mustard.

In June, the OPCW's member states granted the organization new powers to assign blame for chemical weapons attacks, but that was not the mandate of the team that carried out the Douma inquiry.

The OPCW is also looking into an alleged gas attack last November in Aleppo that reportedly made up to 100 people ill. The Syrian government and its ally, Russia, blamed that attack on insurgents.</s>THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) - The global chemical weapons watchdog said Friday it found "reasonable grounds" that chlorine was used as a weapon in an attack on the Syrian town of Douma last year.

The finding was contained in a detailed report by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons' fact finding mission that investigated the attack on April 7, 2018. Medical workers said at the time that the attack killed more than 40 people.

In a statement, the OPCW said the mission visited Douma, analyzed samples taken from the scene and from people affected, interviewed witnesses and studied toxicological and ballistics analyses.

The data, it said, provided "reasonable grounds that the use of a toxic chemical as a weapon" took place.

"This toxic chemical contained reactive chlorine. The toxic chemical was likely molecular chlorine."

The Fact Finding Mission's mandate does not include laying blame for the attack.

FILE - In this Monday, April 16, 2018 file photo, people stand in front of damaged buildings, in the town of Douma, the site of a suspected chemical weapons attack, near Damascus, Syria. The global chemical weapons watchdog says an investigation has found "reasonable grounds" that chlorine was used as a weapon in an attack on the Syrian town of Douma last year. The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons issued a final report Friday, March 1, 2019 of its Fact Finding Mission probe into the attack on April 2018. The United States, Britain and France blamed Syrian government forces for the attack and launched punitive airstrikes. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

The United States, Britain and France blamed Syrian government forces for the attack and launched punitive airstrikes. Syria denied responsibility.

Douma was the final target of the government's sweeping campaign to seize back control of the eastern Ghouta suburbs of Damascus from rebels after seven years of revolt. Militants gave up the town days after the alleged attack.

The OPCW said the report has been sent to the United Nations Security Council.

Russia, a staunch ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad, also rejected claims that Syria was responsible for the attack and even brought what it called witnesses to The Hague to describe their experiences.</s>The global chemical weapons watchdog said March 1 that chlorine was used against the rebel-held Syrian town of Douma last year, in a long-awaited final report on the attack that killed 43 people.

 

 The report by the Hague-based Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) was based on a visit by a fact-finding mission to the site of the attack.

 

 The mission's mandate does not include laying blame, but Western powers led by the United States said the regime of President Bashar al-Assad was responsible for the attack and launched air strikes on Syrian military installations in response.

 

 The OPCW said two cylinders likely containing chlorine smashed into a housing block in the town.

 

 The report said there were "reasonable grounds that the use of a toxic chemical as a weapon has taken place on 7 April 2018. This toxic chemical contained reactive chlorine."

 

 It said, however, that it found no evidence of the use of nerve agents in Douma, which had been previously alleged by some parties in the conflict.

 

 The Russian Embassy in The Hague rejected the report, claiming the attack was "staged" by Syrian rescue volunteers known as the White Helmets.

 

 Russia is Assad's main international backer.

 

 The report will now go to the UN Security Council.

Based on reporting by AP and AFP</s>THE HAGUE, Netherlands — The global chemical weapons watchdog said Friday it found "reasonable grounds" that chlorine was used as a weapon in an attack on the Syrian town of Douma last year.

The finding was contained in a detailed report by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons' fact finding mission that investigated the attack on April 7, 2018. Medical workers said at the time that the attack killed more than 40 people.

In a statement, the OPCW said the mission visited Douma, analyzed samples taken from the scene and from people affected, interviewed witnesses and studied toxicological and ballistics analyses.

The data, it said, provided "reasonable grounds that the use of a toxic chemical as a weapon" took place.

"This toxic chemical contained reactive chlorine. The toxic chemical was likely molecular chlorine."

The Fact Finding Mission's mandate does not include laying blame for the attack.

The United States, Britain and France blamed Syrian government forces for the attack and launched punitive airstrikes. Syria denied responsibility.

Douma was the final target of the government's sweeping campaign to seize back control of the eastern Ghouta suburbs of Damascus from rebels after seven years of revolt. Militants gave up the town days after the alleged attack.

The OPCW said the report has been sent to the United Nations Security Council.

Russia, a staunch ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad, also rejected claims that Syria was responsible for the attack and even brought what it called witnesses to The Hague to describe their experiences.</s>THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The global chemical weapons watchdog says it has found “reasonable grounds” that chlorine was used as a weapon in an attack on the Syrian town of Douma last year.

The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons issued a final report Friday of its Fact Finding Mission’s probe into the attack on April 7, 2018.

The United States, Britain and France blamed Syrian government forces for the attack and launched punitive airstrikes. Syria denied responsibility.

The Fact Finding Mission’s mandate does not include laying blame for the attack.</s>THE HAGUE: The world's chemical weapons watchdog said on Friday (Mar 1) that chlorine was used against the rebel-held Syrian town of Douma in 2018, in a long-awaited final report on the deadly attack.

The report by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) was based on a visit by inspectors to the site of the attack which witnesses said killed 43 people.

Western powers led by the United States blamed the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for the incident and unleashed air strikes on military installations in response.

The Hague-based watchdog said two cylinders likely containing chlorine smashed into a housing block in the town.

The OPCW report said that there were "reasonable grounds that the use of a toxic chemical as a weapon has taken place on 7 April 2018. This toxic chemical contained reactive chlorine."

It said however that it found no evidence of the use of nerve agents in Douma, which had been previously alleged by some parties in the conflict.

The findings confirmed an interim OPCW report released last July saying that traces of chlorine were found.

The report does not place blame because it was not in the OPCW's remit at the time, although the watchdog has since been given powers to investigate responsibility for all chemical attacks in Syria back to 2014.

Russia, which backs Assad, rejected the report and said the attack was "staged" by Syrian rescue volunteers known as the White Helmets.

"In spite of all the evidence presented by Russia, Syria, and even British journalists that the Douma incident is no more than 'White helmets' staged provocation, Technical Secretariat of OPCW states in today's report that chlorine was used in Douma as a chemical weapon," the Russian Embassy in The Hague tweeted.

British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt however said Syria should now honour its 2013 vow to destroy all its chemical weapons, made after 1,400 people were killed in the Damascus suburb of Ghouta in what the UN said was an attack using the nerve agent sarin.

"Confirmed today by @OPCW - chemical weapons WERE used in Douma, Syria in April 2018. The Assad regime must cease, declare and destroy its chemical weapon programme. We remain committed to seeking justice for the victims," Hunt tweeted.

A team of OPCW inspectors took more than 100 samples from seven sites in Douma when they gained access to the town after being denied access for several weeks.

The OPCW said it reached its conclusions based on "witnesses' testimonies, environmental and biomedical samples analysis results, toxicological and ballistic analyses from experts".

The report said "two yellow industrial cylinders dedicated for pressurised gas" were found, one of which had landed on top of the housing block and crashed through it.

It said it was "possible that the cylinders were the source of the substances containing reactive chlorine."

The OPCW said witnesses told the team there were "43 decedents related to the alleged chemical incident, most of whom were seen in videos and photos strewn on the floor of multiple levels of an apartment building and in front of the same building."

The videos "indicate exposure to an inhalational irritant or toxic substance" and show burns to the eyes and foaming from the mouth, although it could not directly link those to any specific substance.

The watchdog also rejected claims by the Syrian regime that the gas came from an alleged rebel chemical weapons facility and storehouse in the area.

"From the analysis of the information gathered during the on-site visits to the warehouse and facility suspected of producing chemical weapons, there was no indication of either facility being involved in their manufacture," it said.

The report will now go to the UN Security Council.

The OPCW has been at the forefront of investigating chemical attacks during the eight-year Syrian civil war, with investigators previously confirming the use of "chlorine, sulphur mustard, and sarin as chemical weapons" in other incidents.

But the watchdog is now riven by political divisions between Russia and the West, particularly over its new powers to attribute blame.

A nerve agent attack on a Russian ex-spy in the English city of Salisbury in 2018, which the West blamed on Moscow, has further poisoned relations.
The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons's Fact-Finding Mission in Syria issues its report regarding the April 7, 2018 chemical attack in Douma. It reveals that there is conclusive evidence that proves a toxic chemical containing molecular chlorine was used in the attack. However, it did not assign blame for the attack. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the opposition blame each other for the attack.