MOSCOW. Nov 26 (Interfax) - The Russian Foreign Ministry expects the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to investigate the chemical attack in Syria's Aleppo.
"Without a doubt, the barbaric attack on Aleppo residents merits unequivocal condemnation and should not go unpunished. We expect that the international community, which has repeatedly voiced its categorical rejection of the use of chemical weapons in Syria, will respond appropriately to this attack," the Russian Foreign Ministry said on the ministry's website.
"We hold that the OPCW, as the main international relevant authority establishing instances of the use of toxic substances, will conduct a timely and professional investigation in full compliance with the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling, and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction," the ministry said.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said that it condemns the attack in Aleppo in the strongest terms. Following the attack, the Syrian government sent a letter to the UN secretary-general, the chair of the United Nations Security Council, and the director general of the OPCW, urging them to take immediate measures to investigate the incident and send experts to the scene of the incident, the ministry said.
"It is necessary to take all possible measures in order to find and hold responsible those who have been using toxic substances to intimidate Syria's civilians for years as soon as possible," it said.
It said that on November 24, terrorists from Jabhat al-Nusra (banned in Russia) in the Idlib de-escalation area attacked residential areas of Aleppo (al-Khalidiya, al-Zahraa, and el-Nil Street) with shells filled with toxic substances.
According to the available information, 73 civilians were hospitalized with symptoms of severe chemical poisoning, eight of them in serious condition, the ministry said.