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| Syria crisis: OPCW receives Syrian chemical arms data | Syria crisis: OPCW receives Syrian chemical arms data |
| (34 minutes later) | |
| The international chemical weapons watchdog says it has received "the expected" account by Syria of its chemical arms programme. | The international chemical weapons watchdog says it has received "the expected" account by Syria of its chemical arms programme. |
| The announcement by the Organisation for the Prevention of Chemical Weapons comes before a deadline set for Damascus as part of a Russia-US deal. | The announcement by the Organisation for the Prevention of Chemical Weapons comes before a deadline set for Damascus as part of a Russia-US deal. |
| Syria is believed to have around 1,000 tonnes of chemical toxins. | Syria is believed to have around 1,000 tonnes of chemical toxins. |
| Its entire chemical weapons arsenal is meant to be dismantled by the middle of next year under the terms of the deal. | Its entire chemical weapons arsenal is meant to be dismantled by the middle of next year under the terms of the deal. |
| "We can confirm that we have received the expected disclosure from the Syrian government regarding its chemical weapons programme," the OPCW said. | |
| "The Technical Secretariat is currently reviewing the information received," the statement added. | |
| On Monday, the UN confirmed in a report that the nerve agent sarin had been used in an attack in the Ghouta district of the capital, Damascus, on 21 August, killing hundreds of people. | |
| The report did not apportion blame, but the US, UK and France have accused Syrian government forces of carrying out the attack, and the US has threatened military action. | |
| Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has blamed rebel groups, and Syria's ally, Russia, said it had "serious grounds" to believe the attack had been a provocation by the rebels. | |
| More than 100,000 people have died since the uprising against President Assad began in 2011. | |
| Millions of Syrians have fled the country, mostly to neighbouring nations, and millions more have been internally displaced. | |
| Security Council disagreements | |
| The US-Russian deal aims to have inspectors on the ground in Syria in November, when they will make an initial assessment and oversee the destruction of certain equipment. | |
| The destruction of all of Syria's chemical weapons would then be completed by mid-2014. | |
| The core members of the OPCW were expected to vote on the timetable next week. | |
| However, the OPCW said in a statement on Friday that a meeting of its executive council scheduled for Sunday had been postponed, without giving a reason. | |
| "We will announce the new date and time... as soon as possible," it said. | |
| Once the OPCW agrees to the plan, the United Nations Security Council will seek to endorse it. | |
| The five permanent members are still discussing the wording of a resolution. | |
| The White House said on Friday that the threat of military action remained on the table if Syria broke the agreement. | |
| But Russia is opposed to the explicit mention of penalties in the event of Syria failing to co-operate. |