Diplomat says Syria hiding some chemical arms - Middle East - Al Jazeera English:
Syria maintains an ability to deploy chemical weapons, a senior Western diplomat has said, citing intelligence from Britain, France and the United States.
"We have some intelligence showing, that they have not declared everything", a senior diplomat told the Reuters news agency, adding that a "substantial" part of the chemical weapons programme was hidden.
A deadline for Syria to remove all of its chemical weapons will expire on Sunday.
The comments could strengthen allegations Syria's military recently used chlorine gas, a claim dismissed by Russia on Friday.
Syria denies it maintains the capacity to deploy chemical weapons, calling the allegation a US and European attempt to use their "childish" policies to blackmail the government of Bashar al-Assad.
The verification of Syria's poison gas arsenal and its destruction has been overseen by a joint team of the United Nations and the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), the global chemical arms watchdog.
The joint task force said earlier this week that Syria has nearly completed the handover of its chemical weapons stockpile.
Activist footage shows the apparent effects of chlorine gas used in Hama province in April [Shaam News Network]
