Will Syria’s Chemical Weapons Be Dumped in Lebanon?

International attempts to dump Syria’s chemical weapons in Lebanon have gotten underway, thus bringing back to memory the nuclear waste buried in Kesserwan highlands decades ago, a report quoting official sources claimed.

For some, these claims may not be ruled out given that the Former Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, Mustafa Kemal Tolba, had estimated that the disposal cost of one tonne of toxic waste in Africa and the Arab countries wouldn’t exceed $40, whereas this same process would entail an astronomical cost in the U.S. surpassing by far the before-mentioned amount (multiplied 14 to 36 times).

Caretaker Environmental Minister Nazim Khoury denied knowledge of such claims, voicing rejection of such plan.

“Regardless of the source of the news, I – as the environment minister – represent Lebanon in this respect and we shall not approve such a proposal,” he stressed.

“Lebanon has had enough environmental and water pollution. Our country is too small and has become but one agglomeration whereas chemical waste burial requires countries with vast desert areas,” he added.

Minister Khoury suggested the news may be just “testing the waters” but still asserted that such action will never take place.