NEW YORK: There are “reasonable grounds” to believe the Syrian Arab Air Force was responsible for a chemical weapons attack on Douma almost five years ago, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons said on Friday.
Its Investigation and Identification Team, which is responsible for identifying the perpetrators of such attacks in Syria, concluded that on the evening of April 7, 2018, at least one helicopter belonging to the elite Syrian “Tiger Forces” unit dropped two yellow cylinders filled with toxic chlorine gas onto two residential buildings in the city.
Fernando Arias, the OPCW’s director-general, said: “The world now knows the facts — it is up to the international community to take action, at the OPCW and beyond.”
The Douma attack resulted in the confirmed deaths of 43 identified civilians. Some estimates put the true death toll at 50. At least 100 people were injured.
The IIT said that it reached its conclusion on the basis of “reasonable grounds,” which is the standard of proof consistently adopted by international fact-finding bodies and commissions of inquiry.
The IIT report, the team’s third, said that investigators, analysts and several external independent experts scrutinized the physical evidence of the attack, which included environmental and biomedical samples, witness statements and other verified data, such as forensic analyzes and satellite images.
The OPCW said: “The IIT considered a range of possible scenarios and tested their validity against the evidence they gathered and analyzed to reach their conclusion: That the Syrian Arab Air Forces are the perpetrators of this attack.”
UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told Arab News: “It’s sad that in the 21st century we need to repeat this, but the use of chemical weapons anywhere, by anyone, under any circumstances is intolerable.
“Impunity for the use of chemical weapons is also unacceptable and it’s imperative that those who have used chemical weapons are identified and held accountable.”
He reiterated calls for the full implementation of Security Council Resolution 2118, which was unanimously adopted in September 2013 after a UN investigation confirmed the use of chemical weapons against civilians in a Damascus suburb the previous month. Images of the victims, including children, suffocating after breathing in a nerve agent caused outrage worldwide.
The resolution called on the Syrian regime to destroy its stockpiles of chemical weapons by mid-2014 and set out punitive measures in the event of non-compliance. It also banned Syrian authorities from using, developing, producing, acquiring, stockpiling or retaining any chemical weapons, or transferring them to other states or non-state actors.
In October 2013, the Syria regime submitted to the OPCW a formal initial declaration of its chemical weapons program, including a plan for the destruction of stockpiles.
Almost 10 years later, the UN’s disarmament chief, Izumi Nakamitsu, continues to assert that the regime’s declaration cannot be considered accurate or complete. She said “gaps, inconsistencies
and discrepancies” were identified that continue to cast doubt on the true extent of the destruction of chemical weapons by the regime.
Dujarric called on the Syrian government to cooperate fully with the OPCW. The organization has for months complained that its attempts to schedule talks in Damascus about the issue have been blocked by the “continued refusal” of Syrian authorities to issue an entry visa for one member of its Declaration Assessment Team. The Syrian government accuses the team of being biased and unprofessional.
Dujarric reiterated the full support of the UN for “the integrity, the professionalism, the impartiality, the objectivity and the independence of the work of the OPCW.”
The IIT is a fact-finding entity, not a prosecutorial or judicial body, and does not make recommendations for future action, which is an issue for the policy-making bodies of the OPCW.
Syrian regime guilty of chemical attack on Douma, weapons watchdog concludes
https://arab.news/c3w87
Syrian regime guilty of chemical attack on Douma, weapons watchdog concludes
- Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons said it is up to the international community to take action over the 2018 attack in which 50 people died
- Stephane Dujarric once again called on the Syrian government to fully comply with Security Council Resolution 2118 and destroy its chemical weapons stockpiles
US envoy expected in Beirut on Tuesday for ceasefire talks
- World powers say a Lebanon ceasefire must be based on UN Security Council Resolution 1701 which ended a 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel
The US-led ceasefire diplomacy has come back into focus as Israel has been stepping up its offensive: Israeli strikes in two Beirut neighborhoods killed six people including at least one senior Hezbollah official on Sunday, the first time Israel has struck central areas of the capital in a month.
The new US truce proposal was delivered last week to Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, who has been endorsed by Hezbollah to negotiate.
White House envoy Amos Hochstein was expected in Beirut on Tuesday for talks on the ceasefire, a Lebanese political source told Reuters. Lebanese media outlet Voice of Lebanon also reported the visit, citing Lebanese lawmaker Kassem Hashem, who is part of Berri’s parliamentary bloc.
World powers say a Lebanon ceasefire must be based on UN Security Council Resolution 1701 which ended a 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel. Its terms require Hezbollah to move weapons and fighters north of the Litani river, some 20 kilometers north of the border.
The diplomacy has been complicated by an Israeli demand for the freedom to act should Hezbollah violate any agreement, which Lebanon has rejected.
Israel launched its offensive after almost a year of cross-border hostilities with Hezbollah. Its declared goal is to secure the return home of tens of thousands of Israelis forced to evacuate the north due to rocket fire from Hezbollah, which opened fire in solidarity with its ally Hamas as the Gaza war got underway more than a year ago.
The Israeli campaign has uprooted more than 1 million people in Lebanon. Israel has dealt Hezbollah heavy blows, using airstrikes to pummel wide areas of Lebanon and sending ground forces into the south.
Israel assassinates Hezbollah media official
- Mohammed Afif killed in strike on Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party office in central Beirut, Lebanon
- Afif, founding member of Hezbollah, joined party in 1983, and has been media in-charge since 2014
BEIRUT: An Israeli strike on a building in central Beirut on Sunday killed Hezbollah’s media relations chief, Mohammad Afif.
It was later announced that Mahmoud Al-Sharqawi, who was assisting Afif, was also killed at the headquarters of the Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party in Ras Al-Nabaa, a neighborhood of Beirut.
This is the first time this area has been attacked since Israel began operations in the country.
It is densely populated with residents and displaced people from the south, and Beirut’s southern suburbs who have taken refuge there.
The strike also wounded three others, the Health Ministry said in a preliminary count.
Paramedics at the scene of the attack told Arab News about “seeing more blood under the rubble, which is being cleared to determine the fate of those who were inside the building.”
The targeted center has belonged to the Ba’ath Party for decades.
Its Secretary-General Ali Hijazi said he was not in the building at the time of the airstrike, and did not explain why Afif was holding a meeting in the Ba’ath Party building.
Information circulated at the site of the attack that a group from Hezbollah’s media relations department was in the building when it was targeted, raising fears that three people accompanying Afif and who are missing might also have been killed.
On Oct. 22 and Nov. 11, Afif held two press conferences in the open air in the southern suburb of Beirut to present Hezbollah’s positions on developments under the watchful eye of Israeli reconnaissance planes, which are constantly flying over the southern suburb.
Afif was a founding member of Hezbollah, joining the party in 1983, and has been in charge of its media since 2014.
He managed Hezbollah-affiliated media outlets such as Al-Manar TV, Al-Nour radio station, and Al-Ahed news website.
Several residents of the targeted area said they received calls warning them to evacuate their homes immediately beforehand.
A 50-year-old woman said: “I just left the house without taking anything with me. It is a real terror.”
The airstrike, which is suspected to have been launched by a drone, destroyed the upper floors of the five-story building, and damaged neighboring buildings on the narrow street.
Israeli army radio confirmed Mohammed Afif was the target of the strike.
It is the third time Beirut has been targeted since the Israeli military expanded its operations in Lebanon.
On Oct. 10, three airstrikes were directed at Wafiq Safa, the head of the liaison and coordination unit of Hezbollah, severely injuring him, as well as the destruction of two buildings in the neighborhoods of Basta and Nuwairi.
A week before, a Hezbollah ambulance center in Bachoura was attacked, leading to the deaths of six people and injuries to seven others.
On Sunday, residents of the Ain Al-Rummaneh area adjacent to the Chiyah district received evacuation warnings issued by Israeli army spokesperson Avichay Adraee via X, accompanied by maps indicating locations to be targeted on the outskirts of Ain Al-Rummaneh, Haret Hreik, and Hadath.
Israeli warplanes subsequently demolished tall residential and commercial buildings in the area.
Our Lady of Salvation Church in Hadath was severely damaged, as were the surroundings of Mar Mikhael Church.
This was followed by a second wave of raids on residential buildings in Burj Al-Barajneh and Bir Al-Abed, and a third wave targeted more than one location in Haret Hreik and Sfeir.
The Israeli spokesperson claimed that the airstrikes “targeted military command centers and other terrorist infrastructures belonging to Hezbollah in the southern suburbs.”
The claim came as Israeli attacks targeting southern Lebanon continued.
The residents of 15 towns deep in the south were asked to evacuate their houses immediately and move north of the Awali River.
The Lebanese military said an Israeli attack on Sunday killed two soldiers, accusing Israel of directly targeting their position in southern Lebanon.
“The Israeli enemy directly targeted an army center” in Al-Mari in the Hasbaya area, causing “the death of one of the soldiers and the wounding of three others, one of whom is in critical condition,” the army said in a statement.
A separate statement shortly afterward said “a second soldier” had died of his wounds.
The Lebanese Army has lost 36 soldiers to Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon over the past year.
Prime Minister Najib Mikati paid tribute to the “martyrs of the army who gave their lives.”
He said: “We must all cooperate so their sacrifices do not go in vain by working first to stop the Israeli aggression on Lebanon and enable the army to carry out all the tasks required of it, to extend the authority of the state alone over all Lebanese territories.”
Mikati said he was hopeful that the ongoing talks would result in a ceasefire.
Also on Sunday, Israeli strikes targeted a house in Chabriha, Sidon District, causing injuries, with raids hitting Tefahta and Aanquoun as well.
In another incident, a person was killed and three injured at dawn in an air raid on the town of Jdeidet Marjayoun.
On Saturday night, a family of seven, including three children, were killed when their house in Arabsalim was targeted.
The displaced Al-Hattab family had moved to the north but was not able to adapt to the conditions of displacement and decided to go back to their home in Arabsalim days before it was hit.
Hezbollah said its confrontations with the Israeli army continued at the borders, especially in Shama.
Suspected attack by Yemen’s Houthi militia targets ship in the Red Sea
- A ship’s captain saw that “a missile splashed in close proximity to the vessel” as it traveled near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, UKMTO reports
- Fortunately, the vessel and crew were not hit in the attack, which happened some 48 kilometers west of Yemen port city of Mocha
DUBAI: A suspected attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels targeted a commercial ship late Sunday night traveling through the southern reaches of the Red Sea, though it caused no damage nor injuries, authorities said.
The attack comes as the rebels continue their monthslong assault targeting shipping through a waterway that typically sees $1 trillion in goods pass through it a year over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and Israel’s ground offensive in Lebanon.
A ship’s captain saw that “a missile splashed in close proximity to the vessel” as it traveled near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said in an alert. The attack happened some 30 miles (48 kilometers) west of Yemen port city of Mocha.
“The vessel and crew are safe and proceeding to its next port of call,” the UKMTO added.
The Houthis did not immediately claim the attack. However, it can take the rebels hours or even days to acknowledge their assaults.
The Houthis have targeted more than 90 merchant vessels with missiles and drones since the war in Gaza started in October 2023. They seized one vessel and sank two in the campaign, which also killed four sailors. Other missiles and drones have either been intercepted by a US-led coalition in the Red Sea or failed to reach their targets, which have included Western military vessels as well.
The militia maintain that they target ships linked to Israel, the US or the UK to force an end to Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the conflict, including some bound for Iran.
The Houthis have shot down multiple American MQ-9 Reaper drones as well.
In the Houthi's last attack on Nov. 11, two US Navy warships targeted with multiple drones and missiles as they were traveling through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, but the attacks were not successful.
Palestinian WAFA journalist Rasha Herzallah jailed for 6 months by Israeli court
- Detention extended 5 times before ‘incitement on social media’ charge was brought
LONDON: An Israeli military court sentenced Palestinian journalist Rasha Herzallah to six months in jail on Sunday and fined her 13,000 shekels ($3,300).
Herzallah, 39, was working for the official Palestine News and Information Agency (WAFA) at the time of her arrest last June, when she was summoned to an investigation at the Israeli Huwwara detention center north of the occupied West Bank.
Her detention was extended five times before a charge of “incitement on social media” was brought to court at the Israeli Salem military base near Jenin. She is expected to be released from prison on Dec. 1.
Herzallah is the sister of Muhammad Herzallah, who died in November 2023 after being shot in the head by Israeli forces during a raid on Nablus city, WAFA reported. She is among 94 Palestinian journalists currently detained in Israeli jails.
WAFA reported that three other female journalists, Rola Hassanin, Bushra Al-Tawil and Amal Shujaiyah, a journalism student from Birzeit University, also remain in detention.
Cultural experts urge UN to shield Lebanon’s heritage
- Lebanon’s cultural heritage at large is being endangered by recurrent assaults on ancient cities such as Baalbek, Tyre, and Anjar, all UNESCO world heritage sites, and other historic landmarks.
BEIRUT: Hundreds of cultural professionals, including archeologists and academics, called on the UN to safeguard war-torn Lebanon’s heritage in a petition published on Sunday before a crucial UNESCO meeting.
Several Israeli strikes in recent weeks on Baalbek in the east and Tyre in the south hit close to ancient Roman ruins designated as UNESCO World Heritage sites.
The petition, signed by 300 prominent cultural figures, was sent to UNESCO chief Audrey Azoulay a day before a special session in Paris to consider listing Lebanese cultural sites under “enhanced protection.”
It urges UNESCO to protect Baalbek and other heritage sites by establishing “no-target zones” around them, deploying international observers, and enforcing measures from the 1954 Hague Convention on cultural heritage in conflict.
“Lebanon’s cultural heritage at large is being endangered by recurrent assaults on ancient cities such as Baalbek, Tyre, and Anjar, all UNESCO world heritage sites, as well as other historic landmarks,” says the petition.
It calls on influential states to push for an end to military action that destroys or damages sites, as well as adding protections or introducing sanctions.
Change Lebanon, the charity behind the petition, said signatories included museum curators, academics, archeologists, and writers in Britain, France, Italy, and the US.
Enhanced protection status gives heritage sites “high-level immunity from military attacks,” according to UNESCO.
“Criminal prosecutions and sanctions, conducted by the competent authorities, may apply in cases where individuals do not respect the enhanced protection granted to a cultural property,” it said.
In Baalbek, Israeli strikes on Nov. 6 hit near the city’s Roman temples, according to authorities, destroying a heritage house dating back to the French mandate and damaging the historic site.
The region’s governor said “a missile fell in the car park” of a 1,000-year-old temple, the closest strike since the start of the war.
The ruins host the prestigious Baalbek Festival each year, a landmark event founded in 1956 and now a fixture on the international cultural scene, featuring performances by music legends like Oum Kalthoum, Charles Aznavour and Ella Fitzgerald.
