U.N. Concludes 'War Crime' Was Committed In Syria
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- United Nations inspectors said Monday that they have clear and convincing evidence of a chemical weapons attack in Syria last month.
And as CBS 2's Dana Tyler reported, the report is adding urgency to calls from Syria to neutralize its arsenal.
U.N. inspectors submitted a 39-page report detailing what they said was convincing evidence that rockets filled with the nerve agent sarin were launched striking the Syrian suburb of Ghouta. Blood and urine samples taken from the victims of the Aug. 21 incident tested positive for exposure to sarin.
U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon briefed the security council Monday.
"The findings are clear this was a war crime," he said.
The U.N. will now work on a resolution calling on Syria to give up its chemical weapons. The resolution is expected to enforce a deal brokered by the United States and Russia, under which Syria must hand over a list of its weapons by Friday.
International inspections will take place before November, and the weapons must be destroyed by the middle of next year.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and his counterparts from Britain and France said a U.N. resolution must be strong and include enforceable deadlines.
"If Assad fails to comply with the terms of this framework, make no mistake -- we are all agreed, and that includes Russia -- that there will be consequences," Kerry said.
Western nations also have invited Syrian opposition leaders to New York for an international conference.
The United Nations report does not say who launched the chemical weapons. But the U.S. claims Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime is to blame for the deaths of more than 1,400 people last month.
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