DAMASCUS: Syrian President Bashar Assad said on Thursday that his country “will defend itself against any aggression,” signaling defiance to mounting Western warnings of a possible punitive strike over a suspected poison gas attack blamed on his regime.
US President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron also faced an uphill struggles in the home front as their legislators questioned the wisdom of getting involved in Syria's bloody conflict.
The attack plans further faced discordant voices among allies, with Egypt's interim government expressing strong objections to the punitive strikes and Lebanon worrying that its already cramped refugee camps would be further flooded with evacuees.
And to top it all, the International Committee of the Red Cross warned that any escalation of the Syrian crisis will only worsen suffering of civilians that has already reached unprecedented levels.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday urged Western powers to hold off on any decisions until his experts can present their findings to UN member states and the Security Council.
UN chemical weapons inspectors toured stricken rebel-held areas near the Syrian capital of Damascus for a third day Thursday.
Amateur video posted online showed UN inspectors wearing gas masks walking through a damaged building. One inspector scooped pulverized debris from the ground, placed it in a glass container and wrapped the container in a plastic bag.
The inspectors’ departure from Syria on Saturday could clear the path for possible military action against the Assad regime.
The suspected chemical weapons attacks took place Aug. 21 in suburbs east and west of Damascus. The humanitarian group Doctors Without Borders has said the strikes killed 355 people.
Obama: No plans yet on how to respond
President Barack Obama said he has not decided how the US will respond. However, he signaled Wednesday that the US is moving toward a punitive strike, saying he has “concluded” that Assad’s regime is behind the attacks and that there “need to be international consequences.”
The US has not presented proof in public. The Syrian regime has denied a role in the attacks, alleging instead, without presenting evidence, that anti-government rebels carried them out to frame Assad.
The Syrian president struck a tough tone Thursday.
His comments, from a meeting with a delegation from Yemen, were reported by the state news agency SANA.
“Threats to launch a direct aggression against Syria will make it more adherent to its well-established principles and sovereign decisions stemming from the will of its people, and Syria will defend itself against any aggression,” Assad said .
It’s not clear if Assad would retaliate for any Western strikes or try to ride them out in hopes of minimizing the threat to his continued rule over parts of Syria. The US has said regime change it not its objective.
Unwilling allies
Meanwhile, the possibility of a Western strike and a Syrian response has sparked anxiety among civilians in neighboring countries.
Israelis stood in long lines Thursday for government-issue gas masks. Turkey’s government crisis management center said officials had designated bunkers at seven areas along the border.
And Lebanon’s foreign minister, Adnan Mansour, warned that international military action against Syria would pose a “serious threat” to the security and stability of the region, particularly in Lebanon.
Egypt’s foreign minister said his country strongly opposes military action against Syria and would not support possible punitive strikes by the United States and allies against the Syrian regime.
Nabil Fahmy said in a statement that Egypt condemns chemical weapons use by any side in Syria’s civil war and is asking the international community to bring perpetrators to justice after a UN team investigating submits findings.
The Arab League this week said Syria’s regime is responsible for the “heinous crime” involving chemical weapons. It did not state a position on foreign punitive strikes against Syria.
Arab League diplomats told The Associated Press the organization will not support military action. They spoke anonymously because of rules preventing them from being named.
Turkey, on the other hand, said this week that it would take part in any international coalition that would move against the Syrian government.
Red Cross' warnings
In a statement, the ICRC said it was appalled by reports of a poison gas attack on Aug. 21 and urged all sides in Syria’s civil war to respect the absolute ban on chemical weapons use under international law.
There are acute shortages of vital medical supplies, food and water in a number of areas in Syria cut off from aid deliveries for months, according to the independent agency, which called for unconditional access for relief supplies.
The Geneva-based ICRC has tried to reach civilians trapped in the old city of Homs since early July but it says it has been blocked by Syrian government authorities.
“Further escalation will likely trigger more displacement and add to humanitarian needs, which are already immense,” said Magne Barth, head of the ICRC delegation in Syria.
“In large parts of rural Damascus for example, people are dying because they lack medical supplies and because there are not enough medical personnel to attend to them,” he said, adding that some go hungry because food does not reach them regularly.
At least 100,000 people have been killed in the conflict that began in March 2011, and every day hundreds of people die or struggle with injuries, according to the ICRC.
Objections at home
Meanwhile, both Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron were trying to shore up domestic political support Thursday for possible military action.
The Obama administration was planning a teleconference briefing Thursday on Syria for leaders of the House and Senate and national security committees, US officials and congressional aides said.
Cameron convened Parliament for an emergency meeting to vote on possible international action against Syria.
Ahead of the session, the British government released documents meant to bolster the case that chemical weapons were used by Syria, including an intelligence assessment that said regime involvement was “highly likely.” The government also said legal conditions have been met for taking action against Syria.
Earlier, Cameron had promised lawmakers he would not go to war until the UN weapons team has had a chance to report its findings.
The speaker of the Syrian parliament, Jihad Allaham, sent a letter to his British counterpart, urging British lawmakers not to endorse military action.
In Vienna, Ban said he spoke to Obama a day earlier about ways to expedite the UN investigation. Ban said the UN team is set to leave Syria on Saturday, and suggested that Western powers hold off on any decisions until the inspectors have presented their findings.
Ban said he told Obama on Wednesday that the UN investigators “should be allowed to continue their work as mandated by the member states and I told him that we will surely share our information and our analysis.”
“Diplomacy should be given a chance, and peace given a chance,” Ban said. “It’s important that all the differences of opinions should be resolved through peaceful means and through dialogue.”
• With reports from agencies
