United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon announced yesterday at a hastily arranged press briefing that he decided to launch an independent investigation into allegations of the possible use of chemical weapons in Syria, after receiving a formal request for such an investigation from the Syrian government. “My announcement should serve as an unequivocal reminder that the use of chemical weapons is a crime against humanity,” Mr. Ban said in his press briefing. He told reporters that the investigation will start “as soon as practically possible.”
