US politicians sceptical over proposed Syria strikes after classified briefing
A classified briefing for US legislators who must soon decide whether to authorise military strikes against Syria left many sceptical, according to numerous members of Congress.
The briefing, provided by Obama administration officials in the Capitol basement, focused on laying out evidence in support of its case that forces loyal to the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, used sarin gas on 12 neighbourhoods in suburban Damascus.
Several legislators in attendance on Sunday afternoon said they were persuaded that Assad was culpable for the attack, but that they were still grappling with what a US response should be.
With congress in recess there was a limited number of senators and representatives attending the briefings. The estimate was that about 100-150 of them attended. Of those who spoke to the press following the briefing a frequent response was along the lines that they found it plausible that Assad was responsible for the CW attack, but they were left unconvinced that the proposed intervention would do anything to help the situation. Several of them stated that they planned to vote no. There is no doubt that there will be repeated attempts to persuade them to change their minds.