SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA (BNO NEWS) -- A United Nations (UN) fact-finding mission to investigate allegations that chemical weapons were used in an attack near the Syrian capital of Damascus last week is expected to arrive at the site within hours, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Monday.

The mission, led by Swedish scientist Ake Sellstrom, arrived in Syria earlier this month to investigate previous allegations of chemical weapons use during the country's ongoing civil war, but they have sought access to the Ghouta area of eastern Damascus after a suspected chemical strike there is claimed to have killed hundreds of people.

Ban, speaking at a press conference in the South Korean capital of Seoul on Monday, said the team is expected to arrive in Ghouta within hours. "And every hour counts. We cannot afford any more delays. We have all seen the horrifying images on our television screens and through social media," he said.

Calling it a "major and terrible incident," the secretary-general said all parties in Syria "have a stake" in finding out the truth surrounding last week's deadly attack. "The whole world should be concerned about any threat or use of chemical weapons. And that is why the world is watching Syria," he said.

Monday's first international visit to the site comes after the Syrian government and rebels agreed to a local ceasefire to allow the inspectors to collect evidence safely. But some Western governments, including the United States, have criticized the regime of President Bashar al-Assad for taking 'too long' to allow in the mission.

"I demand that all parties allow this mission to get on with the job so that we can begin to establish the facts," Ban said, adding that the world 'owes' it to the families of the victims to act. "The team must be able to conduct a full, thorough and unimpeded investigation. I have total confidence in their expertise, professionalism and integrity."

Ban said the mission's success is in the interest of all parties in Syria and may have a deterrent effect on the future use of chemical weapons. "If proven, any use of chemical weapons by anyone under any circumstances is a serious violation of international law and an outrageous crime," he said. "We cannot allow impunity in what appears to be a grave crime against humanity."

Also on Monday, Assad warned other countries against military intervention and said Syria will never become a Western "puppet state," according to an interview published by the Russian newspaper Izvestia. He said Syria remains an independent country that will continue to fight terrorism, referring to rebels who are frequently described as 'terrorists' by the Syrian government.

"These [Western] politicians should know that terrorism is not a winning card you can play when it suits you and keep it in your pocket when it doesn't," Assad said. "Terrorism is like a scorpion: it can sting you unexpectedly at any time. Therefore, you cannot support terrorism in Syria whilst fighting it in Mali, and you cannot support terrorism in Chechnya and fight it in Afghanistan."

Assad, who has led Syria for more than 13 years since the death of his father in 2000, called on Western leaders to listen to the people in their own region, rather than seeking to install "puppet" leaders in the Middle East and elsewhere. He claimed the country's armed forces was making success in its operations and vowed to continue.

"Our message to the world is straightforward: Syria will never become a Western 'puppet' state," he told the newspaper. "We are an independent country; we will fight terrorism and we will freely build relationships with countries in a way that best serves the interests of the Syrian people."

(Copyright 2013 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. Info: [email protected].)

There was a report on the television (CNN) that a UN vehicle was hit by sniper fire. I don't believe anyone was injured.

Of course he will never let it be a Western Puppet state, it's an Iranian and Russian and Chinese puppet state.

http://news.sky.com/story/1133285/syria-un-inspectors-shot-at-by-snipers

Syria: UN Inspectors 'Shot At By Snipers'

Weapons inspectors investigating an alleged chemical attack in Damascus have been shot at by snipers, the UN has said.

A UN vehicle is understood to have come under fire as the team visited a suburb of the city where hundreds of people were allegedly killed.

The alleged shooting came after two mortar bombs landed close to the hotel where the inspectors are staying.

^ What a surprise.

Another "Lusitania" or "Gleiwitz" in the making.

So President Obama declares that the use of chemical weapons against civilians is a "red line" that will trigger a military response and a couple of weeks later we see pictures of an alleged attack on civilians with presumably nerve gas. No one knows who fired it, no one knows whether this was just another "Pallywood" fake, but the west is gearing up for another "no-fly-zone à la Libya" this time without UN approval, as Russia and China have learned from their mistake of giving the NATO a free hand "to protect civilians".

I fail to understand why the USA, the most hated country in the Arab world, is so eager to interfere in an inter-muslim power struggle. On one side we have the Syrian Government, supported by Iran, Hezbollah and probably some factions from Iraq, in the blue corner we have a hodgepodge alliance of opposition groups, radical islamists, rich Gulf emirates and Erdogan's "Osman Empire" - the NATO member Turkey.

Neither side is interested in a peaceful solution and is busy fuelling the war through massive shipments of weapons and men. It is however remarkable that both sides carefully avoid to let the war spill over to their common enemy, Israel.

I don''t see any reason why we "dirty kuffars" should waste money and human lives to interfere with a typical middle east power struggle between followers of the Prophet, especially after the "good boys" have already begun ethnic cleansing to remove Christians from their territory. But if you are the driving force, who secretly lured those "rebels" into action by promising them assistance, you are somehow committed, I guess.

So President Obama declares that the use of chemical weapons against civilians is a "red line" that will trigger a military response and a couple of weeks later we see pictures of an alleged attack on civilians with presumably nerve gas.

It was ONE YEAR later and there were other verified attacks by the Syrian government with chemical weapons and no military response before now. I am not in favor of becoming involved in Syria long term, but Assad was warned and Obama is justified to let him knoiw that he is serious about not using chemical weapons. Personally, I am hoping that we take out as much Syrian airpower as possible to even the odds a little between the government and the rebels.

So President Obama declares that the use of chemical weapons against civilians is a "red line" that will trigger a military response and a couple of weeks later we see pictures of an alleged attack on civilians with presumably nerve gas.

It was ONE YEAR later and there were other verified attacks by the Syrian government with chemical weapons and no military response before now. I am not in favor of becoming involved in Syria long term, but Assad was warned and Obama is justified to let him knoiw that he is serious about not using chemical weapons. Personally, I am hoping that we take out as much Syrian airpower as possible to even the odds a little between the government and the rebels.

You mean make Al Qaeda even more powerful?

What a sad world we are living in !! Apparently, for the UN and other bodies, it is perfectly okay for a large number of civilians to be killed by conventional bombs and bullets over several years, but it is a 'no-no' only when it comes to civilians being killed by chemical weapons.

Oh, and by the way, I don't buy that it was the Syrian regime which used chemical weapons.

It was ONE YEAR later and there were other verified attacks by the Syrian government with chemical weapons and no military response before now. I am not in favor of becoming involved in Syria long term, but Assad was warned and Obama is justified to let him knoiw that he is serious about not using chemical weapons. Personally, I am hoping that we take out as much Syrian airpower as possible to even the odds a little between the government and the rebels.

I am always baffled by the utter stupidity of American foreign politics. Do they never look back at what they have messed up and wonder why? They poured money into Afghanistan to kick the Soviet Union out of the country and promoted the creation of Al Quaeda. They poured money into Pakistan and got the Taliban plus a vicious civil war in Afghanistan. Then they poured more money into Pakistan to get rid of the Taliban and could see their money land in private offshore bank accounts instead. They even invaded Afghanistan to go after the Taliban. No they agree to let the Taliban participate in the political future of the country.

They dumped Reza Shah Pahlewi and got Khomeini who had their embassy ransacked. They dumped Mubarak and got the Muslim Brotherhood. They went after Muammar Ghaddafi and left behind a failed state with a powerless government and heavily armed rogue militias roaming lawless no-go areas. The US ambassador was killed in Libya by their "allies". The invasion of Libya also revealed that the NATO ran out of bombs in this rather minor air campaign.

And now they want to play white knight in shining armour in a vicious civil war between a Syrian Government, Israels arch enemy, and a coalition of elements that would fail to get a visa to the US because of affiliation with islamic terrorist groups, to help the latter create another "caliphate". I guess they then will pour a lot of money into Turkey to fight the terror threats from their "freedom fighters".

To be fair, America is not the only idiot in this game. The UK and France, both almost bankrupt, are also willing to dump millions of taxpayers' money into the Syrian landscape.

I doubt I have overlooked something and there is some ingenious hidden strategy behind all this.

I believe this particular thread is "UN inspectors....."

Stay on topic, please.