Syria has begun destroying remnants of a clandestine chemical weapons programme dating from the rule of former President Bashar al-Assad, which were recovered in May, a Syrian envoy and a United Nations representative said on Thursday.

The destruction marks the first such operation in Syria in a decade. Reuters reported in May that Syria’s new leadership had discovered remnants of Assad’s chemical weapons programme, including raw materials and munitions similar to those used in deadly gas attacks during the country’s civil war.

Izumi Nakamitsu, the UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, told the Security Council that, for the first time since 2014, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) had verified the destruction of chemical munitions in Syria.

Following the May discovery, Syrian authorities identified an additional chemical weapons production facility, a previously unknown chemical used in the production of nerve agents and empty chemical munitions, Nakamitsu said.

Syria also declared two chemical weapons storage facilities where the newly discovered materials had been stored, she added.

Last month, the OPCW deployed a team to Syria to verify the destruction of category-three chemical weapons, which include unfilled munitions and other equipment used to release chemical agents. The team verified the “irreversible destruction of 42 aerial bombs”, Nakamitsu said.

Syria’s ambassador to the UN, Ibrahim Olabi, told the council that the country’s efforts were aimed at “protecting the world and the region”.

However, Olabi strongly criticised Israel, saying repeated Israeli attacks had disrupted some search-and-destruction operations and exposed Syrian teams involved in the work to danger.

“We cannot safeguard the security of the region if our security is exposed to attacks at the hands of Israel,” Olabi said, accusing Israel of undermining regional security and violating international conventions and treaties.

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Olabi also said Syria was preparing to hold the first court hearing for people suspected of involvement in the chemical weapons programme.

Syrian authorities earlier this year detained 18 suspects over alleged involvement in Assad’s chemical weapons programme, including senior military, political and technical officials.

The sudden recent escalation of the Iran war has cast renewed attention on its civilian toll ​after Iran reported 18 dead in the last U.S. assault, including four killed and dozens wounded at a wedding, Reuters reported.

Iran’s health minister said 18 people were killed ‌and 108 wounded in Tuesday night’s U.S. strikes across Iran. The Iranian Red Crescent said four people were killed and 67 wounded at a wedding ceremony near the coast of the Strait of Hormuz.

The return of combat operations has alarmed countries throughout the region, as Iran launched missile and drone attacks against what it said were U.S. assets in Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait and Iraq. Kuwait’s army reported further missile and drone attacks early Thursday, ​saying they were intercepted by air defense systems.

The guns had largely gone silent since the previous exchange in July, although peace talks failed to advance in the interim. ​U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to unleash yet more military force, even though the war is unpopular at home and has driven up ⁠the cost of gasoline.

Top aides to Trump are pushing to keep the war from escalating before November’s midterm elections to staunch Republican electoral losses, and White House officials will consider ramping up ​military action after the vote on November 3, four people familiar with the discussions said.

Iran, for its part, has remained defiant, despite suffering heavy military and economic losses.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio ​Guterres was “deeply alarmed by reports of civilian casualties, including a strike that reportedly hit a wedding ceremony in Iran,” and called for an immediate cessation of military action, his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.

“The Secretary-General condemns all attacks against civilians. He recalls that all parties must respect their obligations under international humanitarian law, including the principles of distinction, proportionality, and precaution,” Dujarric said.

The deaths would be in addition to the 3,636 people documented as ​killed in Iran as of April 7, including 1,701 civilians, according to the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), an independent Iranian rights group, read the report.

The U.S. has reported 18 military personnel killed ​and more than 750 wounded.

“We are aware of reports, which originated from Iranian state media. The U.S. military never targets civilians, unlike the IRGC,” U.S. Navy Captain Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for the U.S. military’s ‌Central Command, ⁠said in an email.

The Iranian Red Crescent Society released video showing debris strewn on the ground next to a building with a large hole in the roof, accompanied by still images showing people, some in Red Crescent vests, at a damaged building and a utility tower lying on the ground.

Reuters was able to verify the location using satellite imagery, which showed the fallen tower was 136 metres (149 yards) from the damaged building.

The wedding incident recalled the blast at a school in Minab that killed 160 peopleat a girls’ school on the first day of the war.

The Pentagon ​has yet to issue an official finding on ​the Minab strike, which would be ⁠the U.S. military’s largest civilian casualty incident in decades. It may have been the result of U.S. use of outdated targeting data, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Democratic members of the U.S. Congress have called on the administration to release findings of its investigation of the incident, ​but the report has not been sent to lawmakers.

U.S. defenders of the Iran war also point to civilian deaths that resulted from ​Iranian attempts to put ⁠down street protests that embroiled the country in December and January, before the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on February 28. HRANA has put that death toll at more than 7,000, while Iranian exile groups claim the number is much higher.

Trump has cited an incentive for Iranians to overthrow their government as one reason for the war, in addition to seeking to halt Iran’s nuclear program and ⁠ending its support ​for militant groups abroad such as Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis.

Iran has also responded to the U.S. attacks ​by threatening any oil tankers that transit the Strait of Hormuz without Iranian authorization, severely curtailing traffic in a waterway that before the war carried 20% of the world’s oil supply.

An international tribunal ruled Monday that India cannot unilaterally suspend or terminate a treaty governing the sharing of water with Pakistan, ordering New Delhi to continue observing its obligations under the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty.

The Permanent Court of Arbitration, based in The Hague, also ordered India to halt work on two hydroelectric projects that could violate the treaty, pending further proceedings.

The Indus Waters Treaty governs the use of water from six rivers whose headwaters originate in India before flowing into Pakistan. The Indus river system is a vital source of water for hundreds of millions of people and supports agriculture and other economic activity in both countries.

The treaty has also provided a rare channel of engagement between India and Pakistan, despite decades of tensions and disputes over Kashmir.

India announced in May 2025 that it was placing the treaty in abeyance after accusing Pakistan of supporting a deadly attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir. Pakistan denied the allegation.

New Delhi rejected Monday’s tribunal ruling, saying the court had no legitimate authority to issue the decision.

“India categorically rejects its so-called award, just as it has firmly rejected all prior pronouncements by this illegally constituted body,” India’s Foreign Ministry said.

“India’s decision to hold the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance remains in force.”

Pakistan welcomed the ruling. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said the decision “vindicates Pakistan’s consistent position that a binding international treaty cannot be unilaterally suspended or set aside.”

He said Pakistan remained committed to protecting its rights under the treaty. –

AFP