United Nations investigators have "reasonable grounds" to believe that chemical weapons have been deployed in the bloody Syrian civil war. In their most recent report the investigators say that they have heard allegations of chemical weapon by both sides of the war, although they have primarily been used by the forces loyal to Bashar al-Assad's regime, according to Reuters.
The report would go on to say that more conclusive tests would be needed to fully determine the extent of chemical weapons used. The U.N. Commission of Inquiry would need to get evidence directly from the sites of attacks or from victims of the attacks in order to be certain, something they are not able to do because al-Assad's government will not allow them access, reports the Los Angeles Times.
In separate testing French scientists say they can confirm that deadly sarin gas has been used multiple times during the conflict. Soil samples were used to determine if sarin had been used, it is not known which side used the gas. French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius told Reuters that the army that used the gas will not go unpunished.
"These tests show the presence of sarin in various samples in our possession," Fabius said.
President Barack Obama has said in the past that the use of chemical weapons represents a "red line" that if crossed would force the U.S. into taking action. The U.N. report, which stated that both sides are likely guilty of using chemical weapons, supports the Obama administration's belief that conclusive evidence is still lacking, according to the Associated Press.
The report also urged nations who have considered giving arms to either side of the battle to reconsider that plan.
"War crimes and crimes against humanity have become a daily reality in Syria where the harrowing accounts of victims have seared themselves on our conscience," the report said. "There is a human cost to the increased availability of weapons."
The report also accused the Syrian government of committing various war crimes including but not limited to rape, torture and the execution of civilians. An estimated 80,000 people have died in the conflict that has lasted just over two years, according to Reuters.
Syrian envoy to the U.N. Khabbaz Hamoui accused the U.N.'s report of being biased and selective in the incidents it included, Reuters reports.
"The commission referred only casually to examples of the crimes perpetrated by the 'takfiri' (extremist) groups including extrajudicial executions, slaying of captives, tearing up the bodies of victims and eating out their guts, " Hamoui said. "Some horrendous scenes that shocked the whole world."
The U.N.'s special envoy to Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi will be holding talks with the U.S. and Russia as the two powers try to find a way to get the warring factions from Syria to finally sit down for a peace conference in Geneva, according to the BBC.
