Mattis: Still no evidence on Syria chemical attack, but I believe there was one

US Secretary of Defense James Mattis reiterated that the Pentagon still has no independent evidence to confirm that there was a chemical weapons attack in Syria last week, but said he personally believes there was one.

“I believe there was a chemical attack. We are looking for the actual evidence,” the secretary told lawmakers on Thursday.

He added that the fact-finding mission by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) may arrive at the site of the alleged attack in the town of Douma “within a week,” but stressed that the inspectors’ mandate would be limited to establishing whether chemical weapons were used at the location or not. He accused Russia and Syria of obstructing the probe, despite Syria inviting the OPCW inspectors there in the first place.