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Middle East and North Africa

UN chemical weapons inspectors arrive to Beirut on the way to Syria

The team plans to further investigate chemical weapons use

Photo EPA/STR

Photo EPA/STR

Beiruit, September 25. (Itar-Tass) – A team of UN inspectors have arrived to Beirut on Wednesday. This is a transit stop as in a few hours inspectors were scheduled to ship off to Damascus to continue investigation of alleged chemical weapons use.

Al-Ikhbariyah Syria TV channel reported that the team, headed by Oke Selstrom, will arrive by the end of the day. Syrian media admit that everything will depend on the situation and security of UN inspectors is the top priority.

Previously, Farhan Haq Associate Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General, said that UN experts would return to Syria in order to continue investigation into chemical weapons use. In his words, inspectors plan to find out whether reports of governmental forces and oppositionist militants using toxic agents are true. At least six cases of chemical weapons use were reported.

Deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov previously expressed hope that UN inspectors would visit Syria in order to examine other areas of chemical weapon use, noting that Selstrom and other UN representatives previously voiced such plans.

Earlier this week Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Russia’s information confirmed the facts Syrian opposition’s militants controlled the territories with the chemical weapon arsenals.

Mikhail Bogdanov, Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister and presidential Middle East, told Itar-Tass September 19 that Russia "was given new evidence incriminating militants in deploying chemical weapons."

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