The Fact-Finding Mission published its report on March 1, 2019, numbered (S/1731/2019), confirming that the city of Douma in the Damascus countryside was subjected to a chlorine gas attack.
The FFM sent a team to Syria, consisting of OPCW inspectors and interpreters, on April 12, 2018. However, the team could not enter Douma until approximately a week after their arrival due to security risks, including the presence of unexploded ordnance.
During an exploratory visit to two key sites in Douma on April 18, 2018, the team came under fire and was targeted by a hand grenade explosion, resulting in the death of two individuals and the injury of another (none of whom were team members). On April 21, 2018, the team was able to enter the area for the first time and over the next 10 days, they visited multiple locations, including a warehouse and a facility suspected by the Syrian regime of producing chemical weapons.
During its visit, the FFM team investigated the incident, gathered testimonies, and reviewed documents and information provided by the Syrian government in the presence of official representatives from the Syrian regime.
Through the analysis of the information collected during their field visit, the team found no evidence suggesting that the facilities were involved in the manufacture of chemical weapons. Instead, the information indicated that the facilities were involved in the production of explosives.
According to the report, eyewitnesses informed the FFM team of the presence of 43 bodies linked to the chemical attack, most of which were seen in videos and photos of the incident. However, the team was unable to access the bodies for examination at that time.
The team found two yellow industrial gas cylinders near the two designated sites they visited separately. After analyzing the samples, it was determined that these cylinders were the source of substances containing reactive chlorine.
The team confirmed that on the same day (April 7, 2018), the city of Douma was subjected to two separate attacks at different times, one of which resulted in fatalities ranging from 40 to 70 people, most of whom were children, in addition to hundreds of injuries related to exposure to chemical substances.
The report concluded that based on the analysis of information, witness testimonies, environmental and biomedical sample results, expert opinions, and other evidence, all indications suggest that a toxic chemical substance containing reactive chlorine was used as a weapon in Douma, with molecular chlorine being the likely culprit.
chemical_attack chemical_weapons chlorine chlorine_attack douma FFM ghouta opcw syria
