The OPCW Investigation and Identification Team (IIT) issued its fourth report on the Marea incident in rural Aleppo on September 1, 2015, confirming ISIS’s responsibility for carrying out chemical-laden airstrikes on Marea.
The team published its report on February 22, 2024, under document number (S/2255/2024), in accordance with paragraph 10 of decision C-SS-4/Dec.3, to address the threat posed by the use of chemical weapons in the Marea incident.
The Investigation and Identification Team (IIT), also referred to as the “Investigation Team,” was established by the OPCW based on the decision made by the Conference of the States Parties on June 27, 2018.
The report clarified that the Investigation Team is not a judicial body with the authority to assign individual criminal responsibility, nor does it have the authority to make final conclusions regarding non-compliance with the Chemical Weapons Convention. Rather, its mandate is to “establish facts.”
The report also explained the legal and practical challenges involved in the work of the Investigation Team, and the conclusions it reached through investigations conducted between January 2023 and February 2024 into the Marea incident that occurred on September 1, 2015.
The IIT began its work in June 2019, based on the findings of the Fact-Finding Mission (FFM), which had confirmed the use of chemical weapons on the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic in several incidents. However, the joint investigation mechanism between the OPCW and the United Nations had not reached a final conclusion regarding these incidents.
The report confirmed that the Investigation Team was unable to access the incident sites in Syria, expressing regret that the Syrian regime did not allow the team to carry out its tasks despite multiple requests made by the OPCW Technical Secretariat. The Syrian authorities had pledged to cooperate with the Secretariat under paragraph 7 of Article 7 of the Chemical Weapons Convention, and Syria was obligated under UN Security Council Resolution 2118 (2013) to fully cooperate with the OPCW.
The Attack on Marea, Rural Aleppo, September 1, 2015
The Investigation Team obtained 29 witness statements, including two from women, and evaluated them. It also reviewed data related to 30 samples and requested and received additional analysis results and data for five samples related to the investigation, including two collected by the team. The team also obtained videos, documents, and other materials from various sources related to the incidents, analyzed the samples, and requested assessments from experts, specialists, and forensic institutes. It also gathered information from open sources.
While collecting and verifying information and conducting interviews, the team communicated with local entities that assisted in providing some information, including entities under the auspices of the United Nations.
The report elaborated on the team’s activities, the approach taken during the investigation, the scenarios and allegations that were considered, and provided context about the overall situation in the area, as well as the military activities relevant to each incident.
The approach taken by the team in the Marea incident report is consistent with the methods used in previous reports (the first, second, and third reports), by analyzing information received from the Fact-Finding Mission (FFM), requesting information from state parties, international organizations, and non-governmental organizations, evaluating witness statements, obtaining videos and documents from various sources, and requesting re-examination of previous sample analyses, among other actions.
The report concluded that, based on all the information obtained and analyzed, it was determined that between 9:00 AM and 12:00 PM local time, during ongoing attacks aimed at capturing the town of Marea, ISIS units shelled sulfur mustard gas using one or more artillery pieces.
The Investigation Team found no clear targeting pattern, and the remnants of the munitions observed were conventional 122mm artillery shells designed to disperse a “liquid payload.” Upon impact, a black, sticky substance with a pungent, garlic-like odor leaked out.
According to the report, at least 11 individuals (whose names the team was able to identify) came into contact with the liquid substance and experienced symptoms consistent with exposure to sulfur mustard gas.
The team confirmed that the chemical payload was dispersed by one or more artillery pieces fired from areas under ISIS control and that no other entity besides ISIS had the means, motives, and capabilities to deploy sulfur mustard gas as part of an attack on Marea on September 1, 2015.
The report affirmed that the Investigation Team reached its conclusions gradually, after considering various theories, and determined that its findings represented the only reasonable conclusions “based on the collective information obtained.” This conclusion was reached based on the standard of “reasonable grounds” for establishing certainty.
chemical_attack chemical_weapons IIT ISIL ISIS MAREA opcw syria
