Chemical Weapons Watchdog Chief Calls for New Powers

Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons Director General Ahmet Uzumcu says investigators must be allowed to assign blame

THE HAGUE—International organizations must have the authority not only to investigate the use of chemical agents but also ascribe responsibility, the head of the global chemical weapons watchdog said Friday, warning that perpetrators must be prosecuted and punished.

The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons is investigating the use of a nerve agent in Salisbury, England, and a chemical-weapons attack in Douma, Syria, but naming who is responsible is generally outside the group’s remit. Both cases have proven...