Aaron Maté at UN: OPCW Cover-up Denies Justice to Douma Victims

UNITED NATIONS, 27 Mar 2023

Aaron Maté | Substack – TRANSCEND Media Service

At the United Nations, Aaron Maté debunks the OPCW’s latest attempts to whitewash the cover-up of its investigation into the alleged April 2018 chemical attack in Douma, Syria.

25 Mar 2023 – On Friday March 24, I spoke to the United Nations Security Council about the OPCW’s ongoing cover-up of its investigation into the alleged April 2018 chemical attack in Douma, Syria.

At the center of the scandal are two veteran OPCW scientists who deployed to Syria in April 2018 for the OPCW’s Douma probe. The pair have accused senior OPCW officials of manipulating the investigation to reach a conclusion that baselessly implicated the Syrian government in a chlorine gas attack. Their concerns are backed up by a trove of leaked documents, which I have extensively reported on.

I addressed the latest efforts by the OPCW, in a new report put out by the watchdog’s Investigation and Identification Team (IIT), to whitewash the cover-up and the allegations against Syria. I wrote about the IIT report in an article last month, and will have a follow-up piece in the coming days.

I will also have more coverage of Friday’s meeting very soon. A very significant development emerged: for the first time, Brazil came out in support of accountability for the OPCW’s Douma cover-up; criticized the IIT’s “poor” handling of the issue; and challenged the US and other member states for blocking the testimony of Jose Bustani, the OPCW’s first Director General, who has also criticized the cover-up.

For now, here are my opening remarks:

___________________________________________

Aaron Maté is a journalist with The Grayzone, where he hosts “Pushback.” He is also a contributor to Real Clear Investigations and the temporary co-host of “Useful Idiots.” In 2019, Maté won the Izzy Award for outstanding achievement in independent media for Russiagate coverage in The Nation.

 

Go to Original – mate.substack.com


Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

 

Share this article:


DISCLAIMER: The statements, views and opinions expressed in pieces republished here are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of TMS. In accordance with title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. TMS has no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of this article nor is TMS endorsed or sponsored by the originator. “GO TO ORIGINAL” links are provided as a convenience to our readers and allow for verification of authenticity. However, as originating pages are often updated by their originating host sites, the versions posted may not match the versions our readers view when clicking the “GO TO ORIGINAL” links. This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.


Comments are closed.