‘Highly Politicized’ Requests Made to Chemical Weapons Probe Team

The pressure surrounding the international investigation into chemical weapons attacks in Syria has become “highly politicized,” according to its lead investigator, Deutsche Welle reports.

Edmond Mulet, head of the joint probe being conducted by the United Nations and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) into the attacks on Khan Sheikhun in April and Um Hosh last September, says the three-person team has come under increasing pressure from “interested parties” attempting to influence their decision.

“We do receive, unfortunately, direct and indirect messages all the time from many sides telling us how to do our work,” Mulet said following a closed-door meeting with the U.N. Security Council. “Some of these messages are very clear in saying that if we don’t do our work according to them … then they will not accept the conclusions of our work.”

ISIS Battling to Repel SDF Advances in De Facto Capital

ISIS forces are attempting to repel the advance of the SDF in Raqqa, the so-called Islamic State’s de facto capital, in a series of counter-offensives following the U.S.-backed militia’s breach of the city’s walls, reports the Washington Post.

The Hawar news agency, a Kurdish organization believed to have close links to the SDF, has reported that battles are taking place in northeast Raqqa, close to the city’s grain silos, which could have massive strategic importance. Meanwhile, the U.K.-based monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says there are reports of clashes south and west of Raqqa city, as well as in the old town, where SDF has advanced 200 yards (200m) beyond the city’s walls.

Russia: U.S. No-Fly Zone Proposal Needs Clarification

Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov has asked the United States for clarification following comments by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Wednesday that Washington was ready to discuss no-fly zones in Syria with Moscow, Reuters reports.

“We have asked [for information]. We haven’t yet received a response to the question about which no-fly zones they have in mind. Because no one was ever talking about them,” Lavrov said on Russian state television on Thursday.

“But I’m sure that the orientation of those comments, despite all the questions about one or another formulation, the orientation towards cooperation between Russia and the United States, that is a step in the right direction.”

Recommended Reads:

• Al Jazeera: U.S.-Led Air Strikes ‘Killed 224’ Civilians in Raqqa
• Christian Science Monitor: Trump Hasn’t Changed Syria Policy. To Defeat ISIS, Some Think He Should
• Stat: Attacks in Syria and Yemen are Turning Disease into a Weapon of War
• Al-Masdar News: U.S. Becoming More Aggressive in Syria: Expert