NBC晚间新闻 总统计划参与调查叙利亚化学战证据（在线收听）

Amid evidence of Syrian chemical warfare, president plans

总统计划参与调查叙利亚化学战证据

Protestors gathered outside the White House to urge the Obama administration to intervene in Syria. President Obama has asked the Department of Defense to “prepare options for all contingencies” according to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel. NBC's Richard Engel reports.

抗议者聚集在白宫外面敦促奥巴马政府干涉叙利亚。国防部的Chuck Hagel表示，奥巴马总统已经要求国防部准备应对可能发生的紧急情况。NBC的Richard Engel报道。

To the continuing crisis in Syria and the problems it it's creating for the president and his national security team. The White House now says it has little doubt the Syrian Army use chemical gas on its own people. Based on witness accounts, the number of victims, their smyptoms and other facts gather by U.S. intelligence. And that Syria promise to allow UN inspectors to investigate too late, we have two reports beginning with NBC's chief foreign coresponsdent Richard Engel who is on the Syrian border with turkey.

Good evening, Carl. Syria says it will allow UN inspectors to visit sites that were allegedly attacked by chemical weapons those UN teams could begin their work tomorrow. But Carl, it's important to know that these UN teams aren't tasked with trying to figure out who may have used chemical weapons, only if chemical weapons were in fact used. There is is big distinction. The head of the Syrian rebel movement general Salim Idris has told us that he believes that president Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian leader, personally ordered chemical attacks against civilians. Why? For two reasons. One a failed assassination attempt earlier this month and two, the areas where these alleged chemical attacks took place are right on the edge of Damascus and that rebels in that area were making progress, they have acquired some new weapons. And when you combine these two together, a failed assassination attempt on the president in Damascus and rebels very close to his own presidential palace, with new weapons and one thing that according to general Idris these two things led the Syrian president to take this very drastic decision.

Richard, this weekend we heard from Iraqi official that tonight from Iran warning the U.S. against crossing a red line saying that taking military action against Syria will have severe consequences. How credible are those threats?

reporter: Well, Iran, of course, is backing the regime of president Bashar. Bashar's regime denies that it ever used chemical weapons and now we're hearing these veiled military threats from Iran that if the U.S. crosses a red line, i.e. takes any kind of military action, that there will be serious consequences. The real question is what kind of capability does Iran have. It could attack U.S. interest, it could attack Israel or it could try carry out some asymmetrical attack that is a terrorist attack some kind.