A global watchdog said Wednesday it is probing "all credible allegations" of the use of chemical weapons in Syria, amid mounting reports they are allegedly being deployed by Damascus.

The accusations "continue to be of grave concern," the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said.

A fact-finding mission mandated "to establish the facts surrounding allegations of the use of toxic chemicals.... is investigating all credible allegations," the body said in a statement.

The latest fighting in Syria's seven-year-old civil war has seen an uptick in the alleged use of chemical weapons by the regime, including on the rebel-held enclave of Eastern Ghouta.

The fresh violence has sparked wide concern and drawn threats of military action from the United States.

"Any use of chemical weapons is a violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention and the hard-won international norm prohibiting these weapons," said OPCW chief Ahmet Uzumcu.

"Those responsible for their use must be held accountable. These abhorrent weapons have no place in the world today."

France said Wednesday that "all indications" suggested the Syrian regime was using chlorine weapons against rebel forces.

And the United States on Monday accused Russia of delaying the adoption of a UN Security Council condemnation of reported chlorine gas attacks in Syria that have left many injured, including children, in recent days.

US Ambassador Nikki Haley told the council there was "obvious evidence from dozens of victims" to corroborate the chlorine attacks in rebel-held Eastern Ghouta.

The OPCW's fact-finding mission was set up in April 2014, and its reports were sent to a joint UN and OPCW panel, known as the Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM).

The JIM sought to identify those behind the deadly attacks, but the renewal of its UN mandate has been blocked since November by Russia.

A previous JIM probe however found that Syrian forces were responsible for an April 2016 sarin attack on the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhun that killed scores of people.

The panel found that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces had used chlorine in two attacks on rebel-held villages in 2014 and 2015.

It also determined that Islamic State (IS) jihadists had used mustard gas in 2015 in the country.

New raids on battered Syria rebel enclave kill 7: monitor
Beirut (AFP) Feb 7, 2018 - A fresh round of Syrian air strikes on rebel-held towns near the capital killed seven civilians on Wednesday, a monitor said, the third consecutive day of ferocious bombing.

"Seven civilians were killed and 15 wounded in a Syrian regime air strike on the town of Hammuriyeh," said Rami Abdel Rahman, who heads the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Another 20 were wounded in government air strikes on two other towns, as artillery fire hit other parts of the Eastern Ghouta region, he said.

The rebel-controlled enclave has faced escalating bombardment in recent days, with 80 civilians killed on Tuesday, including 19 children.

"This was the highest civilian toll in Syria in nearly nine months, and one of the bloodiest days for Eastern Ghouta in several years," Abdel Rahman told AFP.

Home to an estimated 400,000 civilians, the Eastern Ghouta region has been included in a de-escalation deal that was meant to bring calm.

More than 340,000 people have been killed and millions displaced since the conflict in Syria erupted in March 2011.

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American IS recruits struggle with inexperience, culture clash
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US recruits to the Islamic State group struggle more than their European counterparts, lacking support networks and field experience and being assigned to menial jobs, a report on American jihadists said Monday. The study by the George Washington University Program on Extremism said that online social networks were more essential to Americans in reaching Syria and Iraq, as they often had limited personal connections that could help them reach the battlefield. Once there a number found disappoint ... read more