(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) The recent report of the Fact-Finding Mission of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) on chlorine use in Syria strongly points to Syrian regime culpability in using chlorine as a weapon in attacks on three villages in northern Syria earlier this year, US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Sunday.
"The report cites witness accounts indicating helicopters were used in the attacks - a capability the opposition lacks. This strongly points to Syrian regime culpability," Kerry said in a statement released by the State Department.
"The OPCW report raises serious questions about the Syrian regime's compliance with its obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention and UN Security Council Resolution 2118, as well as its willingness to continue using chemical weapons to kill or injure the people of Syria.
The OPCW Fact-Finding Mission also referenced a spate of reports about additional attacks in late August, "with accounts of the incidents bearing a strong resemblance to those that are now confirmed as having been chlorine attacks," Kerry said This finding, coupled with deep concerns regarding the accuracy and completeness of Syria's declaration to the OPCW, raises especially troubling concerns that continued chemical attacks on the Syrian people by the regime could occur, he noted.
"The United States is gravely concerned about the findings in this report, which point to a violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention. "The Assad regime must know that it will be held to account for such use in the international community," he added.
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