Evidence of sarin gas in Syria.
U.N. evidence that could show whether chemical weapons were used in Syria will head to a lab Monday, but the answer may just be a formality.
The American president has already said there's no doubt Syria's government killed hundreds of civilians in a chemical weapon attack -- and he wants to go after the regime. Independent tests have revealed "signatures of sarin gas" in blood and hair samples from Syria, Secretary of State John Kerry said.
President Barack Obama wants Congress to sign off on limited strikes on Syrian targets -- but some lawmakers bristle at the idea of getting ensnared in another overseas conflict.A lot is riding on what the United States decides to do. Britain has already voted against taking any military action on Syria, and France said it won't act without the United States as a partner.That means if the United States wants to attack Syria, it may have to do it alone.
On Monday, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime asked the U.N. to step in.
"The Syrian government calls on the U.N. Secretary General to shoulder his responsibilities for preventing any aggression on Syria," the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency reported.
For now, Syria seems safe from U.N.-sanctioned hits. It's unlikely the U.N. Security Council will authorize military strikes against Syria because two of its members -- Russia and China -- have blocked all efforts to take action against their ally.The pro-Assad Syrian Electronic Army appears to have hacked the U.S. Marines recruitment website, marines.com, and posted a letter urging Marines not to attack Syria.
"Dear US Marines, This is a message written by your brothers in the Syrian Army, who have been fighting Al Qaeda for the last 3 years," the message states. "... Obama is a traitor who wants to put your lives in danger to rescue Al Qaeda insurgents."The message ends by saying, " You're more than welcome to fight alongside our army rather than against it. Your brothers, the Syrian army soldiers. A message delivered by the SEA"While British and U.S. intelligence reports say the August 21 attack involved chemical weapons, U.N. officials have stressed the importance of waiting for an official report from the U.N. chemical weapons inspectors.
The inspectors left Syria on Saturday, carrying evidence that will determine whether chemical weapons were used in the attack last month. But the U.N. won't give a date for when the testing would be completed.
"It's being done as fast as it is possible to do within the scientific constraints," said Martin Nesirky, spokesman for Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
The American president has already said there's no doubt Syria's government killed hundreds of civilians in a chemical weapon attack -- and he wants to go after the regime. Independent tests have revealed "signatures of sarin gas" in blood and hair samples from Syria, Secretary of State John Kerry said.
President Barack Obama wants Congress to sign off on limited strikes on Syrian targets -- but some lawmakers bristle at the idea of getting ensnared in another overseas conflict.A lot is riding on what the United States decides to do. Britain has already voted against taking any military action on Syria, and France said it won't act without the United States as a partner.That means if the United States wants to attack Syria, it may have to do it alone.
On Monday, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime asked the U.N. to step in.
"The Syrian government calls on the U.N. Secretary General to shoulder his responsibilities for preventing any aggression on Syria," the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency reported.
For now, Syria seems safe from U.N.-sanctioned hits. It's unlikely the U.N. Security Council will authorize military strikes against Syria because two of its members -- Russia and China -- have blocked all efforts to take action against their ally.The pro-Assad Syrian Electronic Army appears to have hacked the U.S. Marines recruitment website, marines.com, and posted a letter urging Marines not to attack Syria.
"Dear US Marines, This is a message written by your brothers in the Syrian Army, who have been fighting Al Qaeda for the last 3 years," the message states. "... Obama is a traitor who wants to put your lives in danger to rescue Al Qaeda insurgents."The message ends by saying, " You're more than welcome to fight alongside our army rather than against it. Your brothers, the Syrian army soldiers. A message delivered by the SEA"While British and U.S. intelligence reports say the August 21 attack involved chemical weapons, U.N. officials have stressed the importance of waiting for an official report from the U.N. chemical weapons inspectors.
The inspectors left Syria on Saturday, carrying evidence that will determine whether chemical weapons were used in the attack last month. But the U.N. won't give a date for when the testing would be completed.
"It's being done as fast as it is possible to do within the scientific constraints," said Martin Nesirky, spokesman for Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
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