Chemical Weapons Remnants From Assad Era Found in Syria

Syria’s transitional government reported that it had discovered remnants of chemical weapons linked to the program of former President Bashar al-Assad.

According to Reuters, citing a Syrian official and data from the OPCW, Syrian authorities uncovered materials and munitions that were part of a secret chemical weapons program developed during the country’s civil war.

Among the discoveries were more than 70 rockets and aerial bombs, as well as raw materials used to produce sarin – a nerve agent deployed in attacks by Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

Some of the stockpiles were stored at former military facilities.

OPCW inspectors are cooperating with Syrian authorities at several locations, where they are documenting undeclared chemical weapon stockpiles.

The organization has also discovered equipment used to mix and store chemical agents.

Syrian authorities have detained 18 people suspected of involvement in the former chemical weapons program. Those arrested include military officers, technical experts, and officials connected to Assad’s former regime and international sanctions lists.

Investigators believe the materials are remnants of a much larger chemical weapons program that Damascus had pledged to dismantle after joining the Chemical Weapons Convention in 2013.

International inspectors have repeatedly found gaps and contradictions in Syria’s reports on the destruction of its chemical weapons arsenal.

After Assad’s regime collapsed in 2024, Syria’s new authorities, alongside international partners, resumed inspections at dozens of sites to dismantle the remaining chemical weapons network and ensure the program cannot be rebuilt.

Militarnyi previously reported that the European Union introduced additional sanctions against three Russian organizations involved in the development and use of chemical weapons in Ukraine.