SYRIA CRISIS: OBAMA SAYS WORLD'S CREDIBILITY ON THE LINE....

President Barack Obama has said the credibility of the US Congress and the international community is on the line over their response to Syria's alleged use of chemical weapons.

Mr Obama, who was speaking in Sweden, is trying to build support in the US for military action against Syria.

He said the world should stick to its own red line against the use of "abhorrent" chemical weapons.

Congress will vote next week on whether to support the proposed action.

On Tuesday evening, members of the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations agreed on a draft resolution to go before the house.

According to the draft resolution, the operation would be restricted to a "limited and tailored use of the United States Armed Forces against Syria", and prohibit the use of any ground forces.

Mr Obama was asked in Stockholm whether the decision to ask Congress to vote before taking military action - which he was not constitutionally obliged to do - had put his credibility at stake.

"My credibility is not on the line. The international community's credibility is on the line," he replied.

President Obama said he believed Congress would give its backing to military action against Syria

"America and Congress's credibility is on the line, because we give lip service to the notion that these international norms are important."

He said he believed Congress would give its backing, because America "recognises that if the international community fails to maintain certain norms and standards that govern how countries interact and people are treated that over time this world becomes less safe".

Mr Obama had previously said that the use of chemical weapons would cross a red line.

But he insisted that it was not he who set this line but the international community, by signing a treaty saying their use was "abhorrent", and Congress by ratifying it.

The US has put the death toll from the alleged chemical attack on the outskirts of Damascus on 21 August at 1,429, though other countries and organisations have given lower figures.

SYRIA CRISIS: OBAMA WINS BACKING FOR MILITARY STRIKE...

President Barack Obama has won backing from key US political figures on his plans for a military strike on Syria.

Mr Obama said a "limited" strike was needed to degrade President Bashar al-Assad's capabilities in response to an alleged chemical weapons attack.

Key Republican leaders John Boehner and Eric Cantor both signalled their support for military action. Congress is expected to vote next week.

The UN earlier confirmed that more than two million Syrians were now refugees.

More than 100,000 people are thought to have died since the uprising against President Assad began in March 2011.

'Broader strategy'

President Obama and Vice-President Joe Biden met House Speaker John Boehner, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and the chairmen and ranking members from the national security committees in Washington on Tuesday.

Mr Boehner signalled his support for Mr Obama's call for action, saying that only the US had the capacity to stop President Assad. Mr Boehner urged his colleagues in Congress to follow suit.

Mr Cantor, the House of Representatives majority leader, said he also backed Mr Obama.

Mr Cantor said: "Assad's Syria, a state sponsor of terrorism, is the epitome of a rogue state, and it has long posed a direct threat to American interests and to our partners."

Ms Pelosi said she did not believe Congress would reject a resolution calling for force.

Mr Obama said that Mr Assad had to be held accountable for the chemical attack and that he was confident Congress would back him.

He said he was proposing military action that would degrade President Assad's capacity to use chemical weapons "now and in the future".

"What we are envisioning is something limited. It is something proportional," the president said.

"At the same time we have a broader strategy that will allow us to upgrade the capabilities of the opposition."

Secretary of State John Kerry, Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel and the top US military officer, Gen Martin Dempsey, are to appear later on Tuesday before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.

There will also be a classified briefing for all members of Congress.

Mr Obama will head to Sweden late on Tuesday for a G20 meeting sure to be dominated by Syria.

France has strongly backed the US plan for military action.

President Francois Hollande said on Tuesday: "When a chemical massacre takes place, when the world is informed of it, when the evidence is delivered, when the guilty parties are known, then there must be an answer."

He called for Europe to unite on the issue, but said he would wait for the Congress vote.

If Congress did not support military action France "would not act alone", he said.

UK Prime Minister David Cameron had also backed Mr Obama, but Parliament rejected a resolution on military action.

On Tuesday, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said that the organisation's charter permitted military action only in self defence or with the agreement of the Security Council.

Mr Ban said a US military response could create more turmoil, but that if chemical weapons had been used in Syria then the Security Council should unite and take action against what would be "an outrageous war crime".

The US has put the death toll from the attack on the outskirts of Damascus on 21 August at 1,429, including 426 children, though other countries and organisations have given lower figures.

The Syrian government denies any involvement.

In an interview with French newspaper Le Figaro on Monday, President Assad said such an action would have been "illogical".

He warned that foreign military action could ignite a wider regional conflict.

As tensions rose on Tuesday, a senior Israeli defence official confirmed to the BBC that a missile had been fired to test its defence systems.

The BBC's Richard Galpin in Jerusalem says it is a sign that Israel is taking very seriously the possibility that any US air strikes could lead to retaliatory attacks on Israel - either by Syria itself or by its ally, the Shia militia Hezbollah in Lebanon.

'Overwhelming burden'

Earlier, the UN refugee agency said that more than two million Syrians were now registered as refugees, after the total went up by a million in the past six months.

It said in a statement: "Syria is haemorrhaging women, children and men who cross borders often with little more than the clothes on their backs."

Around half of those forced to leave are children, UN agencies estimate, with about three-quarters of them under 11.

As well as those who have left the country, a further 4.25 million have been displaced within Syria, the UNHCR says, meaning that more people from Syria are now forcibly displaced than from other country.

Pointing out that more than 97% of Syria's refugees are being hosted by countries in the surrounding region, the UNHCR said the influx was "placing an overwhelming burden on their infrastructures, economies and societies".

It appealed again for "massive international support".

On Tuesday, Sweden announced it would become the first European country to grant asylum to all Syrian refugees who apply. They will get permanent resident status.

Sweden has taken in 14,700 asylum seekers from Syria since 2012.

The UN says this is the worst refugee crisis for 20 years, with numbers not seen since the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.

OBAMA TO SEEK CONGRESS VOTE ON SYRIA MILITARY ACTION...

The US says the Syrian government carried out chemical weapons attacks on 21 August in which 1,429 people died.
Mr Obama said the operation would be limited in duration and strong to deter future chemical attacks. Congress is due to reconvene on 9 September.
The Syrian government denies it was behind the attacks and blames rebels.
UN inspectors have now left Syria with samples from site visits, which will go to laboratories in Europe for testing.
‘No blind eye’
President Obama said the military operation could happen tomorrow, next week or in the near future.
“We cannot and will not turn a blind eye to what happened in Damascus,” he said.
As commander-in-chief, Mr Obama has the constitutional authority to order military action without the backing of Congress.
However, he said it was important to have the debate.
The House of Representatives will debate possible actions against Syria in the week after 9 September, Speaker John Boehner said.
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell welcomed the announcement, saying president’s role as commander-in-chief was “always strengthened when he enjoys the expressed support of the Congress”.
The BBC’s Katy Watson in Washington says that if Mr Obama is to intervene, he wants the people – and politicians – on his side.
But what is unclear is what action he would take if Congress votes against involvement, our correspondent says.
Last week, British MPs defeated a government motion to take part in any military action in Syria.
On Saturday, UK Prime Minister David Cameron tweeted: “I understand and support Barack Obama’s position on #Syria”
Russian President Vladimir Putin has challenged the US to present to the UN evidence that Syria attacked rebels with chemical weapons.
Mr Putin said it would be “utter nonsense” for Syria’s government to provoke opponents with such attacks.
Russia – a key ally of Syria – has previously warned that “any unilateral military action bypassing the UN Security Council” would be a “direct violation of international law”.
Moscow, along with China, has vetoed two previous draft resolutions on Syria.
The BBC’s Jeremy Bowen in Damascus says people are worried and are making preparations.
They do not know what Mr Obama meant by a limited attack and what consequences it will have, he adds.
The main findings of the unclassified US evidence state that:

·                     the attacks killed 1,429 people, including 426 children

·                     Syrian military chemical weapons personnel were operating in the area in the three days before the attack

·                     Satellite evidence shows rockets launched from government-held areas 90 minutes before the first report of chemical attack

·                     100 videos attributed to the attack show symptoms consistent with exposure to a nerve agent

·                     Communications were intercepted involving a senior Damascus official who “confirmed chemical weapons were used” and was concerned about UN inspectors obtaining evidence

Meanwhile in France – seen as the main US ally since the UK vote – an opinion poll suggested that 64% opposed the use of force.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has said his country will defend itself against any Western “aggression”.
BBC