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The United States on Thursday expressed its concern that undeclared chemical weapons in Syria could be seized by extremist group Islamic State (IS). The concerns were raised by US ambassador to the UN Samantha Power, as a joint UN and Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons mission is about to end its drive to get rid of Syria’s chemical arsenal. The mission is supposed to officially end by September 38th, but its chief Sigrid Kaag had said that there are still “discrepancies and questions” related to Syria’s declarations of weapons.
“The international community must continue to press for a resolution of all discrepancies and omissions. The U.S. is concerned about all discrepancies and also the potential that there are real omissions in the declaration”, Power said.
She also said that the UN Security Council, which is currently being presided by the United States, “intends to stay very much on top of this”.
“Extremist groups have terrorized everyone they come into contact with in Syria and Iraq and these weapons stocks, if there are any left, could fall into their hands”, she said.
Meanwhile, UK-based monitor the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights on Thursday said that a Syrian government’s raid on a stronghold of IS has caused the deaths of 18 people, including an American fighter in the group.
The monitor said that Wednesday’s strike had destroyed a building used as a prison and a headquarters by IS extremists in the province of Deir Ezzor. The strike, in the village Ghareebeh, killed “at least 18 jihadist fighters and leaders, most of them non-Syrians and including an American”, the monitor said. On Wednesday, it said that at least five IS members were killed in the strike, and that some of the prisoners were able to escape.