AMSTERDAM — They left in secrecy on a private jet, bound for one of the world’s most dangerous places, to destroy substances so deadly that the smallest particle can kill within minutes.
The inspectors for the Netherlands-based Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, tasked with helping Syria destroy its chemical weapons, landed in Beirut on Monday and will travel to Damascus on Tuesday. They have about nine months to find and dismantle an estimated 1,000-ton chemical arsenal that took years to build. It is the shortest deadline they have ever faced in any nation — and their first mission in a country at war.
Here’s a look at the details of their plan so far and the hurdles inspectors may face:
Priority No. 1 — destroy weapon capabilities without getting poisoned
Sarin — suspected in the Aug. 21 attack that killed more than 1,000 people outside Damascus — has a shelf life of about a week, so just disabling equipment used to mix chemical precursors will go a long way toward keeping civilians safe. Another important tactic is destroying missiles used to carry chemical weapons. Without a way to disperse them, deadly chemicals are all but useless in warfare.
Simplest way to disable equipment? Smash it
Inspectors can use any means they deem necessary to render equipment inoperable, including taking sledgehammers to control panels.
Plan is secret
The first 20 inspectors will meet with officials in Syria’s foreign ministry by lunchtime Tuesday. Some will be double-checking Syria’s initial disclosure of what weapons and chemical precursors it has and where they are. Others will begin planning the logistics for visits to every location where chemicals or weapons are stored.
Within a week, a second wave of inspectors will arrive — fewer than 100 combined — and form teams that will fan out to individual sites. Their routes will be kept confidential — for their safety and because Syria has the right not to reveal its military secrets, including base locations. Syria is responsible for their safety.
Seek and destroy
Inspectors will verify what’s at each site by taking samples. They also will vet each site’s suitability as a future destruction center: road access, electricity and water are desirable features. Failing that, they will look at possibilities to transport material to a better location — or perhaps even bring in mobile destruction facilities built by the U.S. or Russia.
Getting rid of battle-ready weapons
As Syria and the inspectors race to achieve the first milestone of rendering all mixing equipment inoperable by Nov. 1, back at headquarters, the OPCW will draw up plans to destroy battle-ready weapons and getting rid of precursor materials. That’s a time-consuming and expensive process, usually done by incinerating materials in sealed furnaces at ultra-high temperatures; or by transforming precursor chemicals or diluting them with water. Experts inside and outside the OPCW say the mid-2014 target for completion is ambitious, although none have said it’s outright impossible.
