By William Tucker
Another week of war in Syria is passing, and with it more accusations by both the regime and the rebels claiming that chemical weapons had been used. The most recent claim was sparked by the regime itself via SANA, the media mouthpiece for what remains of the Assad regime and its supporters. SANA’s report stated that the rebels had used some unidentified chemical weapon against civilians in Khan al-Assal – a city in the north of the country near Aleppo. As one would expect, the rebel forces made a counterclaim that it was the regime that carried out the attack by accidentally bombing a government held area. Though SANA did release some alleged photos of the victims – some 31 people are claimed to have been killed in the attack – they do not appear to have physical damage consistent with exposure to a weaponized chemical agent. In the midst of the allegations and counter-allegations, the Syrian envoy to the UN in New York has called for an independent inquiry into the incident. The violent situation on the ground and the time since the attack, however, may preclude any investigation from completing its mandate. That said, chemical weapons may have been used in Syria in small scale attacks, but with a complex situation in the country and the lack of any independent verification mechanism the accusations will continue to fly until a chemical attack of a larger scale were to take place.
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