The US State Department is scolding the Syrian government, as the OPCW has reportedly determined that sarin, a banned nerve gas, was what killed dozens of Syrians in northern Idlib province on April 4.
Members of the UN’s chemical weapons watchdog, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), reviewed the fact-finding mission (FFM) report at The Hague, Netherlands, on Thursday, but it was not released to the public, Reuters reported.
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The news outlet obtained a copy of the report that relied on eyewitness interviews and samples previously collected from the site of the alleged chemical attack in the town of Khan Sheikhoun. The FFM was reportedly unable to make it to the location in question because of security issues.
“A large number of people, some of whom died, were exposed to sarin or a sarin-like substance,” the summary of the report said.
Now the United Nations and OPCW’s Joint Investigative Mechanism, or JIM, goes into effect, to determine responsibility for the use of a banned chemical weapon.
US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said she looks forward to the JIM investigation, “so we can find justice for the victims.”
The US State Department applauded the work of both the FFM and JIM, “which have been pursued in an impartial and highly professional manner,” the department said in a statement.
The OPCW report comes on the heels of a White House statement this week alleging that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is preparing for “another” chemical weapons attack.
JIM has previously found fault with Syria for three chlorine gas attacks in 2014 and 2015, according to Reuters. The joint mission also blamed the Islamic State for mustard gas use.
The results of the OPCW FFM did not come as a surprise, as OPCW Director-General Ahmet Uzumcu had already said not long after the attack that test samples showed sarin or a similar agent was used.
READ MORE: OPCW discredits itself by dodging proper Syria chemical attack probe – Moscow
An estimated 74 to 100 or more civilians were killed and hundreds were injured in the attack, according to various reports.
Two days after video emerged of the April 4 attack, President Donald Trump authorized the firing of 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles into the Syrian military airfield in Ash Sha’irat, from where US intelligence said the chemical attack was launched.
