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Syria: US says it has no evidence rebel forces used sarin gas
The US has cast doubt on claims by UN human rights investigator Carla del Ponte that Syrian rebel forces could have used the nerve agent sarin. A US state department official said Washington had "no information" that the armed opposition had either "the capability or the intent" to deploy or use chemical weapons.
Speaking on Sunday, Del Ponte said there were "strong, concrete suspicions" the Syrian rebels had used poison gas. She cited testimony from survivors in hospitals outside Syria, but gave no details. "This was use on the part of the opposition, the rebels, not by the government authorities," she told Swiss-Italian TV.
But the state department official said on Monday: "Our understanding has been that the armed opposition does not have such weapons," adding that it took the claims seriously and "we'll have to recheck our facts".
The UN's Syria investigators also appeared to row back on Del Ponte's remarks. They said there was thus far "no conclusive proof" that either side in the Syria conflict had used chemical weapons.
"The independent international commission of inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic wishes to clarify that it has not reached conclusive findings as to the use of chemical weapons in Syria by any parties to the conflict," the commission said in a statement.
Supporters of Syria's moderate opposition dismissed Del Ponte's remarks. They pointed out that if the rebels had had access to chemical weapons they would have been tempted to use them much earlier against Assad's military bases, from where the regime has launched murderous attacks on civilian areas.
Del Ponte's comments further complicate the diplomatic argument over what the west should do in Syria, following air strikes by Israel against Syrian military targets over the weekend, and with the prospect of a regional conflict growing. Her claims are also a propaganda gift for the Assad regime, still reeling from the Israeli attack, and which says it is fighting dangerous Islamist terrorists.
Del Ponte is a former war crimes prosecutor and a member of the commission investigating rights abuses in Syria.
There were claims last month that Assad had used sarin gas in the conflict, though this has not been verified.
Syria: US says it has no evidence rebel forces used sarin gas | World news | guardian.co.uk
The US has cast doubt on claims by UN human rights investigator Carla del Ponte that Syrian rebel forces could have used the nerve agent sarin. A US state department official said Washington had "no information" that the armed opposition had either "the capability or the intent" to deploy or use chemical weapons.
Speaking on Sunday, Del Ponte said there were "strong, concrete suspicions" the Syrian rebels had used poison gas. She cited testimony from survivors in hospitals outside Syria, but gave no details. "This was use on the part of the opposition, the rebels, not by the government authorities," she told Swiss-Italian TV.
But the state department official said on Monday: "Our understanding has been that the armed opposition does not have such weapons," adding that it took the claims seriously and "we'll have to recheck our facts".
The UN's Syria investigators also appeared to row back on Del Ponte's remarks. They said there was thus far "no conclusive proof" that either side in the Syria conflict had used chemical weapons.
"The independent international commission of inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic wishes to clarify that it has not reached conclusive findings as to the use of chemical weapons in Syria by any parties to the conflict," the commission said in a statement.
Supporters of Syria's moderate opposition dismissed Del Ponte's remarks. They pointed out that if the rebels had had access to chemical weapons they would have been tempted to use them much earlier against Assad's military bases, from where the regime has launched murderous attacks on civilian areas.
Del Ponte's comments further complicate the diplomatic argument over what the west should do in Syria, following air strikes by Israel against Syrian military targets over the weekend, and with the prospect of a regional conflict growing. Her claims are also a propaganda gift for the Assad regime, still reeling from the Israeli attack, and which says it is fighting dangerous Islamist terrorists.
Del Ponte is a former war crimes prosecutor and a member of the commission investigating rights abuses in Syria.
There were claims last month that Assad had used sarin gas in the conflict, though this has not been verified.
Syria: US says it has no evidence rebel forces used sarin gas | World news | guardian.co.uk
