UN urges Syria to speed up chemical weapons' elimination

The Syrian government is behind schedule in eliminating their chemical weapons

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon Tuesday said that he has expressed concern to the Syrian government of its "now behind schedule" elimination of chemical weapon and said it was "imperative" Damascus "intensify its efforts."

Ban, in a letter sent to the UN Security Council Tuesday , said that he was aware of the "volatile security situation" faced by the Syrian government, involved in a nearly three-year-old civil war that has claimed the lives of more than 100,000 people and displaced more than 6 million people, Xinhua reported.

Following the alleged use of Sarin gas that killed hundreds in Syria last August, Syria announced it was joining the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and said it would eliminate its chemical weapons with the help of the international community.

The government and opposition blamed each other for the Aug 21 gas attack.