Global chemical arms watchdog warns Syria about unaccounted weapons

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THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The global chemical weapons watchdog said Monday that it reminded Syria of its obligations to comply with rules to safeguard certain toxic chemicals after rebels entered the capital Damascus over the weekend and overthrew Syrian President Bashar Assad.

The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons said in a statement it has been “monitoring closely the recent developments in Syria, with special attention to the status of its chemical weapons-related sites and other locations of interest.”

Syria’s Prime Minister Mohammed Ghazi Jalali said Monday that most cabinet ministers are still working from offices in Damascus but the status of a stockpile of chemical weapons that Assad has been accused of using against civilians is unclear.

The OPCW has been in contact with the Syrian embassy in The Hague, where the organization is based.

Neighboring Israel has said it is carrying out airstrikes on suspected chemical weapons sites and long-range rockets to keep them from falling into the hands of extremists. Israel has also seized a buffer zone inside Syria after Syrian troops withdrew.

Assad’s regime has denied using chemical weapons but the OPCW has found evidence indicating their repeated use by Syria in the country’s grinding civil war.

Earlier this year, the organization found the Islamic State group had used mustard gas against the town of Marea.

The Kremlin said Sunday that Russia had granted political asylum to Assad, a decision made by President Vladimir Putin. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on Assad’s specific whereabouts and said Putin was not planning to meet with him.

Streams of refugees crossed back into Syria from neighboring countries, hoping for a more peaceful future. Jalali, who remained in his post after Assad and most of his top officials vanished over the weekend, said the government is coordinating with the insurgents, and that he is ready to meet rebel leader Ahmad al-Sharaa, formerly known as Abu Mohammed al-Golani, who made a triumphal appearance at a famed Damascus mosque on Sunday.