US ship being readied for Syria weapons disposal
A 648-foot (197.5-meter) government cargo ship with a labyrinth of tubes and valves in its hold should sail within two weeks to destroy some of Syria's chemical weapons, officials said Thursday.
The cavernous cargo hold of the MV Cape Ray was opened for media tours by the Defense Department to display the two massive treatment units that will neutralize 700 tons of chemical weapons, including mustard gas and a form of sarin nerve gas. Called field deployable hydrolysis systems, the technology has never been tested under conditions at sea. (AP)
