United States intelligence officials are convinced the Syrian regime used chemical weapons against rebels last week, and are building their case for military action without putting troops on the ground. NBC's Richard Engel reports.
The United States could hit Syria with three days of missile strikes, perhaps beginning Thursday, in an attack meant more to send a message to the Syrian regime than to cripple its military, senior U.S. officials told NBC News.
The disclosure added to a growing drumbeat around the world for military action against Syria, believed to have used chemical weapons in recent days against scores of civilians and rebels who have been fighting the government for two years.
In three days of strikes, the Pentagon could assess the effectiveness of the first wave and target what was missed in further rounds, the senior officials said.
Underscoring the urgency facing world leaders, the British prime minister called Parliament back from vacation and said it would take a vote Thursday on action, and U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said the American military was “ready to go.”
A day earlier, using forceful language, Secretary of State John Kerry said that Syrian chemical attacks were a “moral obscenity” and said the regime of President Bashar Assad had not just used chemical agents but covered up the evidence.
On Tuesday, the United Nations said that its team investigating chemical-weapons attacks in Syria would delay its next outing by a day, to Wednesday. The team came under fire from unidentified snipers Monday on its way to check out the site of a suspected chemical attack near the Syrian capital of Damascus.
In Cairo, the Arab League said it held Assad responsible for a chemical attack near the Syrian capital. Qatar, Saudi Arabia and other countries condemned the use of unconventional weapons.
Support from the Arab League, even if limited, would provide crucial diplomatic cover for a Western strike on Syria. Action through the United Nations is unlikely because Russia, which supports the Assad regime, has a veto in the Security Council.
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