UN: No timeline on analysis of Syria gas attack samples

The United Nations will not specify a timeline for when the analysis of findings from a gas attack that killed nearly 1,500 people in Syria last week will be finalized, the UN press office has said. UN Spokesperson Martin Nesirky said at a Sunday press briefing that gas attack samples collected in Syria by the UN investigation team would begin to be transferred to laboratories on Monday. The findings were to be handled in compliance with the strictest scientific standards, he added. Nesirky stressed that the UN is "uniquely capable" of establishing "impartial" and "credible" evidence of chemical weapons use in Syria. He said the UN team that operated in the country for four days was able to access all areas it wanted and carry out all fact-finding efforts it considered necessary. Dr. Ake Sellstrom, who heads the UN team, briefed UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon over a phone call earlier on Sunday. The team's members are currently in The Hague, Netherlands. The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons based in The Hague says examination of evidence could take up to three weeks.