US: Syria, Russia Trying to ‘Sanitize’ Chemical-Attack Site

The State Department said Thursday that the U.S. has “credible information” that Russia and Syria are attempting to “sanitize” the site of the suspected chemical-weapons attack in Douma, Syria, earlier this month, according to Reuters. “We have credible information that indicates that Russian officials are working with the Syrian regime to deny and to delay these inspectors from gaining access to Douma,” State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a briefing. “Russian officials have worked with the Syrian regime to sanitize the locations of the suspected attacks and remove incriminating evidence of chemical weapons use.” This comes after a UN reconnaissance team reportedly came under fire this week while visiting suspected chemical-attack sites.