How is Syrian chemical weapons

The specimen collected by UN inspectors from the alleged chemical attack site in Syria is being meticulously analyzed by scientists in laboratories.

Analysis of chemical weapons in Syria conducted by the Chemical Restraint Organization (OPCW) under the auspices of the United Nations. The former senior OPCW staff member said the process of analyzing specimens collected in the field can last 7-10 days.

"The specimen collected by inspectors in Syria is taken to the OPCW laboratory, then transferred to other designated laboratories around the world. Conclusion must have strong scientific evidence. help determine whether chemical weapons have been used in the attack in Ghouta, Syria, " Dr Ralf Trapp told the BBC.

The UN inspector collected evidence at the scene to investigate allegations that the Syrian government used chemical weapons in the August 21 attack.(Photo: AFP)

The UN inspector collected samples of soil, blood, urine and hair from many victims in the attack and tissue samples from the bodies. The samples are numbered, photographed and transferred to the OPCW central laboratory in a sealed container. During the transport process, the samples are continuously cross-checked to ensure there is no confusion and the results are accurate.

Each sample is sent to 3 laboratories with sufficient testing authority. If there are many samples to be analyzed, they are transferred to many other laboratories for independent testing.

Each laboratory received two false samples, one containing no sarin neurotoxin and one containing its other neurotoxin or decomposition product, thereby enabling OPCW to ensure the accuracy of the results. The analysis time depends on the number of samples and the number of labs involved in the test.

In addition, each laboratory must use two completely different methods for analysis. The third test must then be conducted to assess the accuracy of the previous two methods. This process takes several days to complete, the researchers must write a report sent back to OPCW after combining with many interviews, reviews, reports of medical inspectors.

More than 20 laboratories implementing this process are located in many countries such as the UK, USA, France and China.

The purpose of the United Nations and OPCW is to find out the truth about what's going on, not the culprit. However, according to Mr. Trapp, the results may shed light on why many victims do not have typical symptoms when exposed to sarin neurotoxins, such as pupil narrowing and tremor. , after the attack occurred.

"I'm sure it's a chemical attack, but I'm not 100% sure it's sarin, or poor quality sarin," Ralf Trapp said.