Obama US concludes Syria carried out chemical weapons attacks

Damascus Syria (CNN) The United States has concluded Syria carried out chemical weapons attacks against its people President Barack Obama said Wednesday a claim that comes amid a looming diplomatic showdown over whether to strike against Bashar al Assad's military.

Obama's declaration to PBS NewsHour came at the end of a day that saw Russia and China walk out of a U.N. Security Council meeting as word surfaced Britain planned to pursue a resolution to authorize the use of force against Syria even as United Nations weapons inspectors were in Syria assessing whether chemical weapons have been used.

We do not believe that given the delivery systems using rockets that the opposition could have carried out these attacks. We have concluded that the Syrian government in fact carried these out Obama told NewsHour.

And if that's so then there need to be international consequences the president added.

Obama said that he has not made a decision about whether to conduct a military strike in Syria.

Allegations of a chemical weapons attack carried out by al Assad's forces in a Damascus suburb last week triggered the international machinations which have been growing as body counts on both sides in the more than 2 year old civil war have increased.

Those who claimed to have survived the alleged chemical weapons attack described a horrific scene in the town of Zamalka.

After the chemicals they woke us up and told us to put masks on a 6 year old boy said describing the alleged attack.

I told my dad I can't breathe. My father then fainted and I fainted right after that but we were found and taken to the emergency room.

CNN obtained video of the boy and others who made the claims to a journalist in the area.

A Free Syrian Army fighter takes position behind sandbags in the old city of Aleppo Syria on Tuesday August 27. Syria has warned Western leaders against taking any military action after international outrage over the country's suspected use of chemical weapons. Tensions in Syria began to flare in March 2011 and have escalated into an ongoing civil war. Click through to view the most compelling images taken since the start of the conflict. A U.N. team leaves its Damascus Syria hotel in a convoy on Monday August 26. The team was to investigate an alleged chemical attack that killed hundreds last week in a suburb of the Syrian capital. Sniper fire hit a vehicle used by the U.N. chemical weapons investigation team multiple times Monday according to the United Nations. A Syrian soldier walks down a street in Damascus on Saturday August 24. Pigeons lie dead on the ground on August 24 from after what activists say is the use of chemical weapons by government forces in the Damascus suburb of Arbeen. Columns of smoke rise in Barzeh after heavy shelling on Friday August 23. A young Free Syrian Army fighter is reflected in a mirror as he takes position in a house in Aleppo on Thursday August 22. Rebels move around a building in Aleppo on August 22. Syrian rebels claim pro government forces used chemical weapons to kill citizens outside Damascus on Wednesday August 21. People inspect bodies in this photo released by the Syrian opposition Shaam News Network. People search the rubble of a bombed building in Aleppo Syria on Friday August 16. Men bury the bodies of six members of the same family killed in a bombing in Raqqa on Saturday August 10. Syrian Army soldiers patrol a devastated street in Homs on Wednesday July 31. Free Syrian Army fighters move through a hole in a wall in Khan al Assal on Monday July 22 after seizing the town. A rebel fighter walks past swings in a deserted playground in Deir al Zor Syria on Sunday July 21. A rebel fighter speaks with a fellow fighter through a hole in a wall in Deir al Zor on July 21. A Free Syrian Army fighter casts a shadow on a wall as he carries his weapon in a shelter in Deir al Zor on Thursday July 18. Yahya Sweed 13 is comforted by his father as he lies on a bed in Kfar Nubul on Tuesday July 16. The boy was injured by shrapnel resulting in the amputation of his right leg. A rebel fighter naps in a trench about 300 feet from the Syrian government forces' positions along the highway connecting Idlib with Latakia on Monday July 15. A rebel fighter uses a hole in the wall of a destroyed school to aim at Syrian government forces in the Izaa district of Aleppo on Sunday July 14. A Free Syrian Army fighter uses a mirror to scope out snipers loyal to Syrian President Bashar al Assad in Aleppo on Friday July 12. A Free Syrian Army fighter stands over a boy who was injured during shelling in Al Bara on Monday July 8. Members of the Free Syrian Army fire a homemade rocket toward regime forces in Deir al Zor on Sunday June 16. Syrian rebels leave their position in the northwestern town of Maaret al Numan on Thursday June 13. The White House said that the Syrian government has crossed a red line with its use of chemical weapons and announced it would start arming the rebels. Forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al Assad are seen near Qusayr on Thursday May 30. Syrian rebels take position in a house during clashes with regime forces in the old city of Aleppo on May 22. Syrian army soldiers take control of the village of Western Dumayna north of the rebel held city of Qusayr on Monday May 13. Syrian troops captured three villages in Homs province allowing them to cut supply lines to rebels inside Qusayr town a military officer told AFP. Rebel fighters fire at government forces in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo on Sunday May 12. Searchers use a flashlight as they look for survivors among the rubble created by what activists say was a missile attack from the Syrian regime in Raqqa province Syria on April 25. A Kurdish fighter from the Popular Protection Units (YPG) takes position inside a building in the majority Kurdish Sheikh Maqsood area of Aleppo on Apri. 21. People walk past destroyed houses in the northern Syrian town of Azaz on Sunday April 21. Free Syrian Army fighters take positions prior to an offensive against government forces in the Khan al Assal area near Aleppo on Saturday April 20. Men inspect damage at a house destroyed in an airstrike in Aleppo on April 15. Syrian and Kurdish rebel fighters walk in the Sheikh Maqsud district of Aleppo on April 14. A female rebel monitors the movement of Syrian government forces in Aleppo's Sheikh Maqsud neighborhood on Thursday April 11. A rebel runs to avoid sniper fire from Syrian government forces in Aleppo on April 11. Syrian rebels observe the movement of Syrian government forces around Al Kendi hospital in Aleppo on Wednesday April 10. Rescue teams and security forces check out the scene of a deadly car bomb explosion in Damascus on April 8. The fighting has taken a toll on buildings in Aleppo's Saladin district seen here on April 8. A Syrian rebel runs for cover in Deir ez Zor on April 2. A rebel checks for snipers across the street toward the Citadel in Aleppo Syria on Saturday March 30 in this photo taken by iReporter Lee Harper. A Free Syrian fighter mourns the death of a friend in Aleppo on March 30 in this photo taken by iReporter Lee Harper. A Syrian opposition fighter runs for cover from Syrian army snipers in Aleppo on Wednesday March 27. A Syrian girl covers her face to protect herself from fumes as a street covered with uncollected garbage is fumigated in Aleppo on Sunday March 24. A Syrian man and his family drive past damaged buildings in Maarat al Numan on Wednesday March 20. Syrians carry the body of a Syrian army soldier during a funeral ceremony in Idlib province on Tuesday March 19. Syrian rebels take position in Aleppo the largest city in the country on March 11. Syrian men search for their relatives amongst the bodies of civilians executed and dumped in the Quweiq River on March 11. A Free Syrian Army fighter looks back as smoke rises during fighting between rebel fighters and forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al Assad on the outskirts of Aleppo on Saturday March 2. Residents read Shaam News newspapers published by the Free Syrian Army in Aleppo on March 2. A member of the Free Syrian Army reacts to the death of a comrade who was killed in fighting at Bustan al Qasr cemetery in Aleppo on Friday March 1. A rebel fighter throws a home made grenade at Syrian government forces in Aleppo on February 16. A member of the Free Syrian Army stands with his weapon as he looks at a rainbow in Aleppo on February 16. A Syrian woman looks through a bus window in Aleppo on February 14. Free Syrian Army fighters walk through a dust filled stairwell in Damascus on February 7. A Syrian rebel gestures at comrades from inside a broken armored personnel carrier in Al Yaqubia on February 6. A rebel fighter throws a hand grenade inside a Syrian Army base in Damascus on February 3. People stand in the dust of a building destroyed in an airstrike in Aleppo Syria on February 3. Free Syrian Army fighters run as they enter a Syrian Army base during heavy fighting in the Arabeen neighborhood of Damascus on February 3. An unexploded mortar shell fired by the Syrian Army sits lodged in the ground in Damascus on January 25. Fighters from Fateh al Sham unit of the Free Syrian Army fire on Syrian Army soldiers at a check point in Damascus on January 20. A Free Syrian Army fighter walks between buildings damaged during Syrian Air Force strikes in Damascus on January 19. A Syrian rebel fighter tries to locate a government jet fighter in Aleppo on January 18. Syrian rebels launch a missile near the Abu Baker brigade in Albab on January 16. A Syrian boy walks near rubbish next to tents at a refugee camp near the northern city of Azaz on the Syria Turkey border on January 8. Syrians look for survivors amid the rubble of a building targeted by a missile in Aleppo on January 7. A father reacts after hearing of a shelling by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al Assad in Aleppo on January 3. A patient smokes a cigarette at Dar Al Ajaza psychiatric hospital in Aleppo on December 18 2012. The psychiatric ward housing around 60 patients has lacked the means to function properly since fighting broke out there in July. Syrians mourn a fallen rebel fighter at a rebel base in the al Fardos area of Aleppo on December 8. Members of Liwa (Brigade) Salahadin a Kurdish military unit fighting alongside rebel fighters monitor the area in the besieged district of Karmel al Jabl in Aleppo on December 6. A member of Liwa Salahadin aims at a regime fighter in the besieged district of Karmel al Jabl in Aleppo on December 6. Two young boys sit underneath a washline in a refugee camp on the border between Syria and Turkey near Azaz on December 5. The bodies of three children who were allegedly killed in a mortar shell attack that landed close to a bakery in Aleppo on December 2 are laid out for identification by family members at a makeshift hospital at an undisclosed location of the city. Smoke rises in the Hanano and Bustan al Basha districts in Aleppo on December 1 as fighting continues through the night. Damaged houses in Aleppo are seen after an airstrike on November 29. A Syrian rebel mourns the death of a comrade in Maraat al Numan on November 20. Syrians protesters stand on Assad's portrait during an anti regime demonstration in Aleppo on November 16. A Syrian rebel takes cover during fighting against Syrian government forces in Aleppo on November 15. Syrian opposition fighter Bazel Araj 19 sleeps next to his pistol in Aleppo on November 11. A rebel fighter fires at a Syrian government position in Aleppo on November 6. A Syrian rebel leaps over debris left in the street while running across a sniper alley near the Salahudeen district in Aleppo on November 4. Rebels hold their position in the midst of a battle on November 3 in Aleppo. A man cries while being treated in a local hospital in a rebel controlled area of Aleppo on October 31. A man is treated for wounds after a government jet attacked the Karm al Aser neighborhood in eastern Aleppo on October 31. A Syrian rebel interrogates a handcuffed and blindfolded man suspected of being a pro regime militiaman in Aleppo on October 26. Smoke rises from a fuel station following a mortar attack as Syrian women walk on a rainy day in the Arqub neighborhood of Aleppo on October 25. A Syrian rebel fires at an army position in the Karm al Jabal district of Aleppo on October 22. A wounded Syrian boy sits on the back of a truck carrying victims and wounded people to a hospital following an attack by regime forces in Aleppo on October 21. A man lies on the ground after being shot by a sniper for a second time as he waits to be rescued by members of the Al Baraa Bin Malek Battalion part of the Free Syria Army's Al Fatah brigade in Aleppo on October 20. Syrian army soldiers run for cover during clashes with rebel fighters at Karam al Jabal neighborhood of Aleppo on October 20. Smoke rises after a Syrian Air Force fighter jet fired missiles at the suburbs of the northern province of Idlib on October 16. A Syrian opposition fighter stands near a post in Aleppo on October 11. A Syrian man mourns the death of his father who was killed during a government attack in Aleppo on October 10. A rebel fighter is carried by his friends and laid on a gurney to be treated for gunshot wounds sustained during heavy battles with government forces in Aleppo on October 1. Syrian rebels help a wounded comrade to an Aleppo hospital after he was injured in a Syrian army strike on September 18. Free Syria Army fighters are reflected in a mirror they use to see a Syrian Army post only 50 meters away in Aleppo on September 16. A Syrian man carrying grocery bags tries to dodge sniper fire as he runs through an alley near a checkpoint manned by the Free Syria Army in Aleppo on September 14. A woman walks past a destroyed building in Aleppo on September 13. Free Syrian Army fighters battle during street fighting against Syrian army soldiers in Aleppo on September 8. A Syrian man wounded by shelling sits on a chair outside a closed shop in Aleppo on September 4. A woman sits in her wheelchair next to her house damaged by a Syrian air raid near Homs on August 26. Members of the Free Syrian Army clash with Syrian army soliders in Aleppo's Saif al Dawla district on August 22. A man mourns in front of a field hospital on August 21 in Aleppo. Wounded civilians wait in a field hospital after an air strike on August 21 in Aleppo. People pray during the funeral of a Free Syrian Army fighter Amar Ali Amero on August 21. A man cries near the graves of his two children killed during a recent Syrian airstrike in Azaz on August 20. A Syrian woman holds her dead baby as she screams upon seeing her husband's body being covered following an airstrike by regime forces on the town of Azaz on August 15. A Syrian rebel runs in a street of Selehattin during an attack on the municipal building on July 23. Syrian rebels hunt for snipers after attacking the municipality building in the city center of Selehattin on July 23. Members of the Free Syrian Army's Mugaweer (commandos) Brigade pay their respects in a cemetery on May 12 in Qusayr. Syrian rebels take position near Qusayr on May 10. A Free Syrian Army member takes cover in underground caves in Sarmin on April 9. Rebels prepare to engage government tanks that advanced into Saraquib on April 9. Men say prayers during a ceremony in Binnish on April 9. A young boy plays with a toy gun in Binnish on April 9. A Free Syrian Army rebel mounts his horse in the Al Shatouria village near the Turkish border in northwestern Syria on March 16 a year after the uprising began. Syrian refugees walk across a field before crossing into Turkey on March 14. A rebel takes position in Al Qsair on January 27. A protester in Homs throws a tear gas bomb back towards security forces on December 27 2011. A man stands under a giant Syrian flag outside the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus on December 24 2011. A member of the Free Syrian Army looks out over a valley in the village of Ain al Baida on December 15 2011. Members of the Free Syrian Army stand in an valley near the village of Ain al Baida close to the Turkish border on December 15 2011. Displaced Syrian refugees walk through an orchard adjacent to Syria's northern border with Turkey on June 14 2011 near Khirbet al Jouz. A Syrian man holds up a portrait of President Bashar al Assad during a rally to show support for the president in Damascus on April 30 2011. Syrians rally to show their support for President Bashar al Assad in Damascus on April 30 2011. A screen grab from YouTube shows thick smoke rising above as Syrian anti government protesters demonstrate in Moaret Al Noman on April 29 2011. A screen grab from YouTube shows Syrian anti government protesters run for cover from tear gas fired by security forces in Damascus on April 29 2011 during the Day of Rage demonstrations called by activists to put pressure on al Assad. Syrians wave their national flag and hold portraits of al Assad during a rally to show their support for their leader in Damascus on March 29 2011. A woman sits by the hospital bed of a man allegedly injured when an armed group seized rooftops in Latakia on March 27 2011 and opened fire at passers by citizens and security forces personnel according to official sources. Syrian protesters chant slogans in support of al Assad during a rally in Damascus on March 25 2011. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 Syrian civil war in photos U.N. Security Council deadlocked on Syria The woman behind al Assad's regime What a U.S. strike on Syria might entail

Al Assad's government has blamed rebels for carrying out the attack a claim that Obama told PBS was impossible.

We have looked at all the evidence and we do not believe the opposition possessed ... chemical weapons of that sort he said. We do not believe that given the delivery systems using rockets that the opposition could have carried out these attacks.

In the video obtained by CNN one man claimed he evacuated two dead bodies during the attack. Then there was another explosion. I couldn't breathe I had cramps and I couldn't see. The doctors helped me.

The horror of the attack on civilians has jolted the world into potential action on a crisis that has killed more than 100 000 people according to the United Nations.

Last week was not the first time chemical weapons are believed to have been used in the conflict. But it was by far the worst.

'Red line' debate Chemical weapons worse than attacks

Syria is now undoubtedly the most serious crisis facing the international community Lakhdar Brahimi U.N. and Arab League special envoy to Syria said Wednesday in Geneva.

It does seem that some kind of substance was used that killed a lot of people he said. The death toll could be in the hundreds or possibly more than a thousand he said.

Brahimi said the crisis in Syria shows how important it is for the Syrians and the international community to really develop the political will to address this issue seriously and look for solutions for it.

NATO also followed suit with a warning of its own Wednesday.

The Syrian regime maintains custody of stockpiles of chemical weapons. Information available from a wide variety of sources points to the Syrian regime as responsible for the use of chemical weapons in these attacks. This is a clear breach of long standing international norms and practice.

Any use of such weapons is unacceptable and cannot go unanswered. Those responsible must be held accountable. We consider the use of chemical weapons as a threat to international peace and security NATO said in a statement. Some Syrians have told CNN they doubt their government used chemical weapons.

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'Not warmongers'

Syrian Ambassador to the United Nations Bashar Jaafari lashed out Wednesday at the warnings and threats.

We are not warmongers. We are a peaceful nation seeking stability in the area because instability would serve the Israeli interests he told reporters at the U.N. headquarters in New York.

We are in a state of war and preparing for the possibility of such a scenario he said. The Syrian government is looking for stability.

Jaafari accused rebels of obtaining material to produce chemical weapons from outside powers mainly speaking Turkey Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Intervening in Middle East turmoil Mission impossible

In a letter to the United Nations Syria asked for the U.N. weapons inspectors to stay in the country beyond their weekend deadline Jaafari said.

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki moon did not address the letter directly but seemed to ask for a reprieve Wednesday for the sake of the inspectors. The team needs time to do its job he said from The Hague where he visited the International Criminal Court.

He said the inspectors had already collected valuable evidence.

'Groundless excuses'

Russia a close ally of Syria is expected to use its veto power to block a resolution setting up a possible diplomatic showdown.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov insists there is no proof yet Syria's government is behind the chemical weapons attack.

The ministry accused Washington of trying to create artificial groundless excuses for military intervention.

The West handles the Islamic world the way a monkey handles a grenade Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin tweeted.

Missile strikes on Syria likely response to chemical attack

China which also has a permanent seat on the council would also probably object to military measures.

It's time that the United Nations Security Council shouldered its responsibilities on Syria which for the past two and a half years it's failed to do British Foreign Secretary William Hague said Wednesday.

He added that even if China and Russia veto a resolution We and other nations still have a responsibility to act.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif meanwhile warned of graver conditions if strikes are carried out against Syria.

If any country attacks another when it wants that is like the Middle Ages he said.

Who wants what after chemical weapons horror

Syria Chemical weapons how did we get here

U.S. ruled out ground troops

For almost two years Obama has avoided direct military involvement in Syria's bloody civil war as the death toll skyrocketed to more than 100 000 according to U.N. estimates.

But Obama had warned that a chemical attack would cross a red line.

The White House previously ruled out sending ground troops to Syria or implementing a no fly zone to blunt al Assad's aerial superiority over rebels.

Syria strikes could worsen war analysts say

Brahimi said international law requires that that the Security Council approve military action.

I do know that President Obama and the American administration are not known to be trigger happy he said. What they will decide I don't know.

Outside of the United Nations a military coalition is taking shape among Western powers.

France has also signaled it would join Western military intervention against forces supporting al Assad.

President Francois Hollande said France is ready to punish those who made the decision to gas these innocent people.

The French Parliament will hold a session next week to debate the situation in Syria.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister David Cameron spoke by telephone Wednesday about the crisis.

Both agreed that comprehensive use of poisoned gas against the Syrian civil population has now been proven sufficiently and that the Syrian regime has these corresponding poisons the know how for their use and the carriers to deploy them according to a statement released by German spokesman Steffen Seibert.

Both agreed this is a break in the already long ongoing internal conflict and that it cannot continue unpunished therefore an international reaction is inevitable. Both hope no member of the Security Council will close their eyes to this crime against humanity and that the corresponding consequences will be decided.

Britain's Parliament meanwhile is voting on a motion Thursday that would rule out any consideration of possible military action until the United Nations chemical weapons inspectors explain their findings to the U.N. Security Council.

After the inspectors have made their findings members of Parliament would be required to take another vote according to the motion being put forward.

Meanwhile Iran is sending a delegation to Syria on Saturday to study the latest developments the semi official Fars News Agency reported Wednesday citing a senior parliamentary lawmaker.

The visit will examine Syria's conditions and showing support for the Syrian government and nation after the recent US threats Seyed Hossein Naqavi Hosseini parliament's national security and foreign policy commissioner told the news agency.

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CNN's Frederik Pleitgen reported from Syria. CNN's Josh Levs and Chelsea J. Carter reported from Atlanta. CNN's Ben Brumfield Hamdi Alkhshali Jomana Karadsheh Boriana Milanova Chris Lawrence Jim Acosta Samira Said Joe Sterling Elise Labott Jill Dougherty and Saskya Vandoorne contributed to this report.

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