Inspectors Visit All But Two Declared Chemical Sites. As the process to destroy Assad’s chemical weapons cache continues, The New York Times reports from Geneva that inspectors from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons “have completed verification of Syria’s chemical weapons arsenal at 21 of the 23 sites identified by the government. They have been unable to visit the other two because they are in contested areas” of the country.
“Despite this hurdle, a senior State Department official said Monday that the disarmament process was generally on track and that there ‘was reason to be optimistic,’” the paper says.
Young Saudis Urged to Avoid Syria War. As foreign fighters pour into Syria, Saudi Arabia’s most powerful religious figure urged the country’s young men not to get involved in the conflict. In more than two years of conflict, fighters and funding from Gulf Arab states like Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, have poured into the rebel camp.
Saudi Arabia itself has been a staunch financial backer of the Syrian opposition since the conflict began in 2011; Reuters reports that last week, some Saudi officials said they would move to arm rebel groups without the cooperation or oversight its allies in Washington.
But it’s drawing a line, at least publicly, with grand mufti Abdulaziz Aal al-Sheikh urging Saudi’s own men to stay home rather than journey to join the fight.
“This is all wrong, it’s not obligatory,” he said, according to Saudi newspaper al-Hayat, as quoted by Al Jazeera.
“Going to a land that you do not know and without experience, you will be a burden to them, what they want from you is your prayer.”
Syria’s Brutality Continues at Will. In an op-ed in the Washington Post, Michael Gerson calls attention to the fact that while the international community remains focused on Syria destroying chemical weapons, conventional weapons are killing scores of civilians.
“Through trial and error, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is finding ways to attack women and children that the world finds more acceptable,” Gerson writes.
“Events in Syria strain recent historical comparisons. Only Syria and Afghanistan have experienced the displacement of more than 6 million people. Only the violence in Syria and Rwanda has displaced tens of thousands in a single day. A third of the Syrian population has been forced from their homes; perhaps 100,000 are dead.”
Suggested Reads from Our Editorial Team:
Reuters: Syria Envoy Visits Damascus, but Prospects for Peace Talks Dim
Reuters: Syria Hackers Hit Obama-Linked Twitter, Facebook Accounts
Al Jazeera: Nasrallah Blames Syria Stalemate on Saudi Arabia
AP: Chemical Weapons Inspectors in Syria Miss Deadline
Washington Post: Beleaguered Syrian Christians Fear Future, Increasingly Targeted by Jihadis
France24: WHO Confirms Polio Outbreak in Syria
AFP: Syria Envoy Warns of ‘Somalization’ if Peace Efforts Fail
Al Arabiya: Brahimi: Assad Could Contribute to New Syria But Not as a Leader