Chemical weapons watchdog says Syria declared program to produce ricin

THE HAGUE, Netherlands – An official document of the global chemical weapons watchdog says that Syrian authorities have declared that they once had a program to produce the deadly toxin ricin.

The report on the website of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons says that Damascus revealed in July "a facility for the production of ricin" along with two other "chemical weapons-related facilities."

The OPCW says that Syria's latest declaration states that "the entire quantity of ricin produced was disposed of prior to the entry into force" of the Chemical Weapons Convention following Damascus' decision to join last year.

The report raises questions about the completeness of Syria's initial declaration of its chemical weapons stockpile.

Nobody at the OPCW was available for comment Friday.