Syrian opposition leaders have been told to brace for a foreign strike against President Bashar al-Assad's regime within days, according to sources who attended a meeting with the Syrian National Council in Turkey.
"The opposition was told in clear terms that action to deter further use of chemical weapons by the Assad regime could come as early as in the next few days, and that they should still prepare for peace talks at Geneva," one of the sources who was at the meeting on Monday told Reuters.
Reuters reported that the notice came from "Western powers" and that Syrian opposition leaders have also handed over a wish list of targets should a possible strike be imminent.
The U.S. navy has four destroyers positioned in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, within range of targets in Syria, according to the U.S. Department of Defence. American warplanes are already in the region.
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem, however, warned that any U.S. or European military intervention would also be met with force through "all available means."
Moallem addressed a news conference Tuesday after U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry stopped short of saying President Barack Obama was ready to take military action in Syria.
Kerry has strongly condemned what he called "undeniable" evidence that Syria launched a chemical attack last week that killed hundreds of people in three Damascus suburbs — a claim that a special UN convoy began investigating on Monday but that Syria has denied.
'We will surprise everyone'
But Moallem told reporters in Damascus that any possible military intervention from foreign governments would be met with a show of force from the regime.
"We have the means to defend ourselves and we will surprise everyone," Moallem told reporters in Damascus. "We will defend ourselves using all means available. I don't want to say more than that," he said.
The UN, which sent a convoy of investigators to Damascus on Monday to launch a probe into whether chemical weapons were used by Syria last week, says more than 100,000 people have been killed since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began more than two years ago.
A second round of UN inspections that was to begin Tuesday has been pushed back until at least Wednesday due to a dispute with rebels about security arrangements, he added. The UN confirmed the delay.
Moallem blamed the delay on rebel fighters, claiming that the opposition has not yet promised safe passage to the UN experts, and that the inspections will not be able to proceed until at least Wednesday as a result. Moallem did not elaborate on the postponement of the UN trip.
Assad has denied launching a chemical attack, blaming "terrorists" for the incident.
However, the regime prevented UN inspectors from visiting the site of the Aug. 21 attack until Monday. The team reached the site despite coming under fire from a sniper and was able to speak with survivors and physicians who treated the victims. They also used instruments to try to determine what chemical agent was used.
On Monday, Kerry said Obama has been in close touch with key Western allies, and "will be making an informed decision about how to respond" to what the U.S. considers indiscriminate use of toxic agents against civilians.
"Make no mistake," Kerry added. "President Obama believes there must be accountability for those who would use the world's most heinous weapons against the world's most vulnerable people."
Two administration officials said the U.S. was expected to make public a more formal determination of chemical weapons use on Tuesday, with an announcement of Obama's response likely to follow quickly. The officials insisted on anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the internal deliberations.
U.S. Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel told BBC News in an interview that the U.S. military is in position to move as soon as the commander in chief gives the go-ahead.
"We are ready to go, just like that," he said.
Canada is weighing all options, and Chief of the Defence Staff Gen. Thomas Lawson is in a third day of key military meetings with joint chiefs of staff in Jordan. The purpose of the meeting is to ensure the allied mlitary chiefs are able to devise a strategy for containing any possible conflict to Syria and preventing spillover into neighbouring regions.
Britain recalls Parliament for Syria talks
Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird said Canada is "incredibly outraged" by the purported use of chemical weapons in Syria, and that a "firm response" from the international community should be expected.
While Baird has expressed a preference for a UN mandate, he has not ruled out any role Canada might play in a possible military strike.
In London, British Prime Minister David Cameron has recalled Parliament for an urgent discussion on a possible military response to the alleged chemical attack in Syria.
Cameron says the crisis session will be held Thursday, when Parliament would traditionally be on its summer recess.
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told reporters on Tuesday the gas attack constituted "a crime against humanity and a crime against humanity should not go unanswered. What needs to be done must be done. Today, it is clear the international community is faced with a test."
'President Obama believes there must be accountability for those who would use the world's most heinous weapons against the world's most vulnerable people.'—U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry
It's unclear whether Obama would seek authority from the United Nations or Congress before using force. The president has spoken frequently about his preference for taking military action only with international backing, but it is likely Russia and China would block U.S. efforts to authorize action through the UN Security Council.
The U.S. State Department on Monday postponed a meeting scheduled for Wednesday in The Hague between senior diplomats from the United States and Russia due to "ongoing consultations" over the chemical weapons attack in Syria.
"We will work with our Russian counterparts to reschedule the meeting," the senior official said, adding that the chemical weapons attack demonstrated the need for a "comprehensive and durable political solution" to end the bloodshed.
Russia responded on Tuesday that it regretted the decision.
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