09/10/2013 18:33
Syria crisis: Chemical weapons watchdog OPCW urges truce
The global chemical weapons watchdog has called for a ceasefire in Syria to enable it to destroy the stockpiles, the BBC reported.
The organisation's chief, Ahmet Uzumcu, said the deadline for destroying equipment was "extremely tight", but was possible if truces were agreed.
Some early work of the inspectors was disrupted when they came under fire.
Under a UN resolution, Syria's chemical weapons production equipment must be destroyed by 1 November and stockpiles must be disposed of by mid-2014.
"If some temporary ceasefires can be established, I think those targets could be reached," said Mr Uzumcu, head of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
He told reporters in The Hague that Syrian authorities had so far been co-operative.
He said the inspectors had 20 sites to visit in the coming weeks and had so far completed inspections at one facility.
An inspections team came under sniper fire on 26 August, but there have been no reported attacks on inspectors since.
The OPCW, mandated under the UN resolution, earlier said it would send a second team to Syria to help meet the deadlines.