The British Prime Minister David Cameron who suffered a parliamentary defeat on Syria on Thursday said he understood and supported Mr. Obama’s position. Earlier the Russian President Vladimir Putin said US allegations that the Syrian government had used chemical weapons made no sense. Mr. Putin said if the Americans have any evidence, they should present it to the UN Security Council.

“Common sense speaks for itself. The Syrian government forces are on the offensive. In certain regions they’ve surrounded the rebels. In these conditions to give away the trump card to those who continually called for external military intervention is simply utter folly and does not fit any logic at all. So I’m convinced that it’s nothing more than a provocation by those who want to drag other countries into the Syrian conflict.”

The Syrian government says its armed forces are on full alert and ready to face any potential foreign attack. State television quoted the Syrian prime minister Wael al-Halqi as saying that troops had their finger on the trigger and were prepared for any challenge. Some reports said the Syrian army had been moving military equipment to civilian areas in anticipation of possible US-led strikes. BBC correspondent says residents have been stocking up on food.

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Thousands of protesters in Iraq have defied security threats staging demonstrations against what they say a generous privileges and benefits enjoyed by members of parliament. Iraqi politicians are entitled to pension payments of several thousand dollars a month far higher than other workers. The protesters also aired longstanding grievances about widespread corruption and the poor state of public services.