British PM Theresa May has announced that the UK will expel 23 Russian diplomats after Moscow refused to explain how a Russian-made nerve agent was used on former spy Sergei Skripal in Salisbury.
She said the diplomats, who have a week to leave, were identified as “undeclared intelligence officers”.
Theresa May also revoked an invitation to Russia’s foreign minister, and said the Royal Family would not attend the FIFA World Cup in Russia later this year.
Moscow denies attempted murder and says it will respond appropriately.
Addressing the UN Security Council, the UK said Russia had used “a weapon so horrific that it is banned in war”.
UK’s deputy UN ambassador, Jonathan Allen, accused Russia of breaking its obligations under the Convention on the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.
He said he had heard the threats from Russia but that the UK would not be deterred.
In response Russia’s ambassador to the UN, Vasily Nebenzya, denied his country’s involvement in the attack and demanded “material proof” from Britain to support its charge.
The US ambassador Nikki Haley said Washington stood in “absolute solidarity” with the UK, citing the “special relationship” between the two countries.
The mass expulsion is the largest since 31 were ordered out in 1985 after double agent Oleg Gordievsky defected.
Former spy Sergei Skripal, 66, and his daughter, Yulia Skripal, 33, remain critically ill in hospital after being found slumped on a bench on March 4.
Russia refused to meet Theresa May’s midnight deadline to co-operate in the case, prompting her to announce a series of measures intended to send a “clear message” to Russia: expelling 23 diplomats; increasing checks on private flights, customs and freight; freezing Russian state assets where there is evidence they may be used to threaten the life or property of UK nationals or residents; ministers and the Royal Family boycotting the FIFA World Cup in Russia later this year; suspending all planned high-level bilateral contacts between the UK and Russia and planning to consider new laws to increase defenses against “hostile state activity”.
It appears Kim Jong-nam, the half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, has been killed in Malaysia by a highly toxic nerve agent called VX.
The VX nerve agent is the most potent of the known chemical warfare agents. It is a clear, amber-colored, oily liquid which is tasteless and odorless.
Image source Wikimedia
The agent works by penetrating the skin and disrupting the transmission of nerve impulses – a drop on the skin can kill in minutes. Lower doses can cause eye pain, blurred vision, drowsiness and vomiting.
VX can be disseminated in a spray or vapor when used as a chemical weapon, or used to contaminate water, food, and agricultural products.
It can be absorbed into the body by inhalation, ingestion, skin contact, or eye contact.
Clothing can carry VX for about 30 minutes after contact with the vapor, which can expose other people.
VX was banned by the 1993 UN’s Chemical Weapons Convention.
Kim Jong-nam was killed by VX nerve agent, Malaysian toxicology reports say.
The half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un died last week after two women accosted him briefly in a check-in hall at a Kuala Lumpur airport.
The toxicology reports indicate Kim Jong-nam was attacked using VX nerve agent, which is classified as a weapon of mass destruction by the UN.
There is widespread suspicion that North Korea was responsible for the attack, which it fiercely denies.
North Korea responded furiously to Malaysia’s insistence on conducting a post-mortem examination and has accused Malaysia of having “sinister” purposes.
Malaysia’s police chief Khalid Abu Bakar said on February 24 that the presence of the nerve agent had been detected in swabs taken from Kim Jong-nam’s eyes and face.
One of the women Kim Jong-nam interacted with at the airport on February 13 had also fallen ill with vomiting afterwards, he added.
Khalid Abu Bakar said other exhibits were still under analysis and that police were investigating how the banned substance might have entered Malaysia.
The first Syrian chemical weapons are leaving the country on a Danish ship.
The vessel left the northern Syrian port of Latakia on Tuesday, escorted by Russian and Chinese warships.
Removing the most dangerous chemicals is the first step of an UN-backed deal to eliminate Syria’s chemical arsenal.
A previous bid to collect the materials was aborted after Syrian officials failed to deliver the toxic chemicals to the collection point in Latakia.
The hazardous cargo is due to be taken to Italy, where it will be loaded onto a US Navy ship and shipped to international waters for destruction in a specially created titanium tank on board.
The mission is being run jointly by the UN and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
The agreement was brokered by the US and Russia after rockets filled with the nerve agent sarin was fired at three towns in the Ghouta agricultural belt around the Syrian capital Damascus on 21 August.
Hundreds of people were killed in the attacks.
The first Syrian chemical weapons are leaving the country on a Danish ship
Western powers said only Syrian government forces could have carried out the assault, but President Bashar al-Assad blamed rebel fighters.
In a statement on Tuesday, the UN confirmed that a small number of containers with “priority one chemical materials” were on board the Ark Futura cargo ship, one of two vessels in charge of collecting the materials.
They will wait in international waters for additional chemicals to be delivered to Latakia for collection.
A spokeswoman said the loading took only “a couple of hours”, but this delicate phase of the operation had been “months in the planning”.
The OPCW did not disclose what percentage of Syria’s toxic arsenal – around 1,300 tonnes of weapons and precursors – had been removed.
The toxic materials were supposed to have been removed by December 31st, but the deadline was missed because of heavy fighting and the presence of opposition groups along the main road between Damascus and Latakia.
The complete elimination of all chemical weapons material and equipment must be completed by June.
The “most critical” chemicals include about 20 tonnes of the blister agent sulphur mustard.
How the plan will unfold:
The Syrian authorities are responsible for packing and safely transporting the chemical weapons from 12 sites across the country to the port of Latakia. Russia has supplied large-capacity and armored lorries, while the US has sent container drums and GPS locators.
Russia will provide security for loading operations at Latakia, for which the US has supplied loading, transportation and decontamination equipment. China has sent 10 ambulances and surveillance cameras, and Finland an emergency response team in case of accidents.
Denmark and Norway are providing cargo ships and military escorts to take the chemicals to an as yet unnamed port in Italy. Russian and China will also provide naval escorts.
In Italy, the “most critical” chemical agents will be loaded onto the US Maritime Administration cargo ship, MV Cape Ray, to be destroyed by hydrolysis in international waters. Less-toxic chemicals will be shipped by Norwegian and Danish vessels for disposal at commercial facilities.
Albanian PM Edi Rama says his country will not allow the destruction of Syrian chemical weapons on its soil.
Edi Rama was responding to two days of protests in Tirana and other cities.
Albania recently destroyed its own chemical stockpile, and the US had requested that it host the dismantling of Syria’s arsenal.
Under the deal brokered by Russia to remove Syria’s chemical weapons, it was agreed that they should be destroyed outside the country if possible.
Albania will not allow the destruction of Syrian chemical weapons on its soil
Edi Rama attacked the Albanian opposition for having criticized the government’s willingness to consider the idea.
A key meeting of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) – the international watchdog supervising the destruction – had adjourned for several hours, awaiting Albania’s decision.
The OPCW needs to come up with an alternative quickly, as the deadline for a detailed plan on destroying Damascus’s toxic agents runs out on Friday.
France has been named as a possible alternative site for destroying Syria’s 1,000 or so tonnes of chemical arms.
Norway has pledged to send a civilian cargo ship and a navy frigate to Syrian ports to pick up the weapons and carry them elsewhere for destruction.
However, Norway said that it could not destroy the weapons on its own soil because it lacked the expertise.
Syria’s declared equipment for producing, mixing and filling chemical weapons has been destroyed, sources with the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons say.
An announcement by the OPCW is expected later – a day before its deadline which Syria had to meet.
Inspectors were sent to Syria following allegations that government forces had used chemical weapons in civilian areas, killing scores of people.
Syria’s declared equipment for producing, mixing and filling chemical weapons has been destroyed
Syrian government denies the accusations.
The inspections were agreed between Russia and the US after Washington threatened to use force in Syria.
The US says more than 1,400 people were killed during a nerve agent attack in Ghouta on the outskirts of Damascus on August 21.
Syria and Russia believe rebel groups were responsible for the attack.
Syria’s chemical weapons arsenal is believed to include more than 1,000 tonnes of the nerve gas sarin, the blister agent sulphur mustard and other banned chemicals, stored at dozens of sites.
It has until mid-2014 to destroy its chemical weapons stockpile.
The Nobel Peace Prize 2013 was awarded to Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) “for its extensive efforts to eliminate chemical weapons”.
The OPCW is the body overseeing destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons.
The Hague-based OPCW was established to enforce the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention.
It recently sent inspectors to carry out the dismantling of Syria’s stockpile of chemical weapons.
The Nobel Peace Prize 2013 was awarded to Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons for its extensive efforts to eliminate chemical weapons
The watchdog picks up a gold medal and 8 million Swedish kronor ($1.25 million) as winner of the most coveted of the Nobel honors.
Pakistani schoolgirl campaigner Malala Yousafzai and gynaecologist Denis Mukwege of the Democratic Republic of Congo had been tipped as favorites to take the award.
Others who had been listed as contenders were Chelsea Manning (formerly Bradley Manning), the US soldier convicted of giving classified documents to WikiLeaks and Maggie Gobran, an Egyptian computer scientist who abandoned her academic career to become a Coptic Christian nun and founded the charity Stephen’s Children.
But an hour before Friday’s announcement, Norway’s public broadcaster reported the award would go to the OPCW.
The 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention has contributed to the destruction of nearly 80% of the world’s chemical weapons stockpile.
US Secretary of State John Kerry has said Syrian government deserves credit for so far complying with a chemical weapons deal.
John Kerry was speaking after international monitors began the destruction of Syria’s stockpile.
The mission was established under a UN resolution, which was passed after a deal between Russia and the US.
The initiative followed international outrage at a chemical weapons attack near Damascus in August.
“The process has begun in record time and we are appreciative for the Russian co-operation and obviously for the Syrian compliance,” John Kerry said after talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) summit in Bali, Indonesia.
“I think it’s extremely significant that yesterday, Sunday, within a week of the (UN) resolution being passed, some chemical weapons were being destroyed.
“I think it’s a credit to the Assad regime, frankly. It’s a good beginning and we welcome a good beginning.”
John Kerry has said Syrian government deserves credit for so far complying with a chemical weapons deal
The destruction of Syria’s chemical arsenal is being overseen by a team from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
An official on the joint OPCW-UN delegation said on Sunday: “The first day of destruction and disabling is over and missile warheads, aerial bombs, along with mobile and static mixing and filling units, were dealt with. Work continues tomorrow and in the next few days.”
The actual destruction of the stockpile, being carried out by the Syrians, is not expected to be straightforward, as some sites are in combat zones.
It is the first time the OPCW – based in The Hague – has been asked to oversee the destruction of a chemical weapons armory during a conflict.
The Syrian government gave details of its chemical weapons arsenal last month to the OPCW under the Russia-US agreement which also provided for Damascus to join the Chemical Weapons Convention.
That arsenal is thought to include more than 1,000 tonnes of sarin and the blister agent sulphur mustard among other banned chemicals.
In an interim report earlier this year, UN chemical weapons inspectors confirmed that the nerve agent sarin had been used in the attack in Ghouta on the outskirts of Damascus on August 21.
It was estimated to have killed hundreds of people and was blamed by the US and other Western powers on the regime of Bashar al-Assad. But he accuses Syrian rebels of being behind it.
Under the terms of the US-Russia deal, Syria’s chemical weapons capability should be removed by the middle of 2014.
The OPWC monitors have announced that the destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons has begun.
The operation is being overseen by a team from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
The mission was established under a United Nations resolution, which was passed after agreement between Russia and the US.
The resolution followed international outrage at a chemical weapons attack near Damascus in August.
In an interim report, UN chemical weapons inspectors confirmed that the nerve agent sarin had been used in the attack in Ghouta on the outskirts of the city on August 21.
It was estimated to have killed hundreds of people and was blamed by the United States and other Western powers on the regime of Bashar al-Assad. But he accuses Syrian rebels of being behind it.
Syria’s chemical arms destruction is being overseen by a team from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons
“Today is the first day of destruction, in which heavy vehicles are going to run over and thus destroy missile warheads, aerial chemical bombs and mobile and static mixing and filling units,” a source with the inspection operation told the French AFP news agency.
It is not clear at which of the chemical weapons sites declared by the government, thought to number about 20, that Sunday’s operation is taking place.
The destruction of the stockpile, being carried out by the Syrians, is not expected to be straightforward, as some sites are in combat zones.
It is the first time the OPCW – based in The Hague – has been asked to oversee the destruction of a chemical weapons armory during a conflict.
The Syrian government gave details of its chemical weapons arsenal last month to the OPCW under the Russia-US agreement which also provided for Damascus to join the Chemical Weapons Convention.
That arsenal is thought to include more than 1,000 tonnes of sarin and the blister agent sulphur mustard among other banned chemicals.
Under the terms of the agreement between the US and Russia Syria’s chemical weapons capability should be removed by the middle of 2014.
The Syrian government has allowed UN inspectors to investigate allegations of a suspected chemical weapon attack near Damascus.
The team is to begin work on Monday. Activists say Syrian forces killed more than 300 people in several suburbs east and west of the capital on Wednesday.
State media reported that chemical agents were found in tunnels used by rebel fighters, and also that soldiers suffered “suffocation” in fighting around the suburb of Jobar.
State TV is meanwhile reporting that the governor of the central district of Hama, Anas Abdul-Razzaq Naem, has been killed in a car bomb attack.
The Syrian foreign ministry statement broadcast on state television said an agreement to allow UN chemical weapons experts to “investigate allegations of chemical weapons use in Damascus province” had been concluded on Sunday with the UN’s disarmament chief, Angela Kane.
The agreement was “effective immediately”, the statement added.
The Syrian government has allowed UN inspectors to investigate allegations of a suspected chemical weapon attack near Damascus
A spokesperson for UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon subsequently announced that the inspectors were “preparing to conduct on-site fact-finding activities”, starting on Monday. A ceasefire will be observed at the affected locations, the statement said.
Russia, a key ally of Syria, welcomed the decision to allow the inspectors in but warned the West against pre-empting the results.
Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) said on Saturday that three hospitals it supports in the Damascus area had treated about 3,600 patients with “neurotoxic symptoms” early on Wednesday morning, of whom 355 died.
While MSF said it could not “scientifically confirm” the use of chemical weapons, staff at the hospitals described a large number of patients arriving in the space of less than three hours with symptoms including convulsions, pinpoint pupils and breathing problems.
UK’s PM David Cameron has discussed the situation in a telephone call with President Francois Hollande of France.
David Cameron agreed a similar response in a telephone conversation with US President Barack Obama on Saturday evening.
Later, Syria’s Information Minister, Omran Zoabi, warned that US military action in Syria would not be a “walk in the park”.
“If the US leads a military intervention, this will have dangerous consequences. It will bring chaos and the region will burn,” he said.
A year ago, President Barack Obama said that any attempt by Syria to use its chemical weapons would be a “red line” for the US, and change his administration’s “calculus” in the region.
Sarin, one of a group of nerve gas agents invented by German scientists as part of Hitler’s preparations for World War II, is an extremely toxic substance that disrupts the nervous system, overstimulating muscles and vital organs.
It can be inhaled as a gas or absorbed through the skin. In high doses, Sarin suffocates its victims by paralyzing the muscles around their lungs. Sarin was called “the poor man’s atomic bomb” due to large number of people that can be killed by a small amount.
One hundred milligrams of Sarin (about one drop) can kill the average person in a few minutes if he or she’s not given an antidote.
Sarin, or GB, or Isopropylmethanefluorophosphonate, is an organophosphorus compound with the formula [(CH3)2CHO]CH3P(O)F. It is a colorless, odorless liquid.
Sarin was discovered in 1938 in Wuppertal-Elberfeld in Germany by two German scientists attempting to create stronger pesticides; it is the most toxic of the four G-agents made by Germany.
The compound, which followed the discovery of the nerve agent tabun, was named in honor of its discoverers: Schrader, Ambros, Rüdiger and Van der Linde.
Sarin is an extremely toxic substance that disrupts the nervous system, overstimulating muscles and vital organs
In mid-1939, the formula for the agent was passed to the chemical warfare section of the German Army Weapons Office, which ordered that it be brought into mass production for wartime use. A number of pilot plants were built, and a high-production facility was under construction (but was not finished) by the end of World War II.
Experts say Sarin is more than 500 times as toxic as cyanide.
Like other nerve agents, Sarin functions by competitive inhibition of the enzyme acetyl cholinesterase. This enzyme is found at synapses and nerve endings where it breaks hydrolyses the neurotransmitter Acetyl choline so that the nerve impulse is only transmitted once as required. When the enzyme is inhibited acetyl choline accumulates at nerve endings. This has various unpleasant effects leading to paralysis (where accumulation occurs at motor neurones) and eventually death by means such as asphyxiation.
Initial symptoms following exposure to sarin are a runny nose, tightness in the chest and constriction of the pupils. Soon after, the victim has difficulty breathing and experiences nausea and drooling. As the victim continues to lose control of bodily functions, the victim vomits, defecates and urinates. This phase is followed by twitching and jerking. Ultimately, the victim becomes comatose and suffocates in a series of convulsive spasms.
Death may follow in one minute after direct ingestion of a lethal dose unless antidotes, typically atropine and pralidoxime, are quickly administered.
Huge secret stockpiles of Sarin were built up by superpowers during Cold War.
Sarin can only be manufactured in a laboratory, but does not require very sophisticated equipment.
This website has updated its privacy policy in compliance with EU GDPR 2016/679. Please read this to review the updates about which personal data we collect on our site. By continuing to use this site, you are agreeing to our updated policy. AcceptRejectRead More
Privacy & Cookies Policy
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
