- NEW: President Obama will give interviews Monday as he makes his case on Syria
- Heavy clashes are reported in a predominantly Christian town in Syria
- Secretary of State Kerry welcomes strong EU statement on the need for accountability
- Ashton urges a "clear and strong response" over chemical weapons use in Syria
(CNN) -- The European Union called Saturday for a "clear and strong" international response to the Bashar al-Assad regime's alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria, but said U.N. inspectors investigating the incident should report their initial findings before any action is taken.
The statement came as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry sought to persuade skeptical European allies to join an international coalition on Syria after a Group of 20 summit ended Friday with a stalemate between Washington and Russia.
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton read the statement, which she said reflected the position of all EU members, after four hours of talks Saturday between Kerry and EU foreign ministers in Vilnius, Lithuania.
"Information from a wide variety of sources confirm the existence of such an attack and seems to indicate strong evidence that the Syrian regime was responsible," it said, given that it was the only party with access to such weapons and the means to deliver them on such a wide scale.
The European Union called the use of chemical weapons a "blatant violation of international law, a war crime and a crime against humanity."
'Constructive' talks, but little headway on Syrian crisis
The statement did not explicitly endorse military action, but said the international community cannot remain idle and that "a clear and strong response is crucial to make clear that such crimes are unacceptable and that there can be no impunity."
At the same time, it said, the European Union underscores the need to address the Syrian crisis through the U.N. process. It hopes that U.N. chemical weapons inspectors who visited the site of the August 21 attack can report their preliminary findings as soon as possible.
It also welcomed comments by French President Francois Hollande that he would wait for the preliminary report before any military action was taken.
Men gather on the remains of a destroyed building after reported air strikes by Syrian government forces in the rebel-held northwestern Syrian province of Idlib on Thursday, September 5. Tensions in Syria began to flare in March 2011 and escalated into an ongoing civil war. Click through to view the most compelling images taken since the start of the conflict.
Men observe the wreckage of a motorbike in the Syrian province of Idlib on September 5. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights watchdog said that Syrian war planes bombed rebel-held areas in Idlib, Aleppo, Hama and Lattakia.
A Free Syrian Army fighter looks through a hole from behind sandbags, while a fellow fighter reads the Quran in Deir Ezzor, Syria, on Tuesday, September 3. The United States and other Western nations blame the Assad regime for a chemical weapons attack that's believed to have killed more than 1,400 people.
A Free Syrian Army fighter takes cover as he watches forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad near Hanano barracks in Aleppo on September 3.
A Free Syrian Army fighter is seen through a hole in a wall of a building in Aleppo on September 3.
Free Syrian Army fighters walk inside a damaged house in Aleppo on September 3.
A Free Syrian Army fighter walks through a hole in a wall in Aleppo on September 3.
Free Syrian Army fighters talk inside a burnt house in Aleppo on September 3.
A Free Syrian Army fighter peeks through the curtains of a bedroom in Deir ez-Zor, Syria, on Monday, September 2.
Free Syrian Army fighters take their positions behind piled sandbags, as one of them points his weapon, in Deir ez-Zor on September 2.
A rebel fighter points his weapon at Syrian regime forces in Deir ez-Zor on September 2.
Syrian firefighters try to extinguish a fire after a missile hit a residential building in Damascus, Syria, on September 2.
A U.N. arms expert collects samples during an inspection of a suspected chemical weapons strike site in the Ghouta area outside Damascus on August 29.
People search for belongings in rubble in Raqqa, Syria, on August 29.
Free Syrian Army fighters launch a rocket toward forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Deir Ezzor on August 29.
A Syrian Kurd uses hay to hide another woman in a training session organized by the Kurdish Women's Defense Units on Wednesday, August 28, in a northern Syrian border village. They're preparing if the area comes under attack.
Free Syrian Army fighters escort U.N. vehicles with chemical weapons experts on August 28 through a site of a suspected chemical weapons attack outside Damascus.
A Free Syrian Army fighter takes position behind sandbags in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, on Tuesday, August 27.
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.
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Syrian civil war in photos
A Syrian boy sits beside his family's belongings on Friday, September 6, as they wait for a vehicle to pick them up after entering Turkey from the Turkish border gate of Cilvegozu. The U.N. refugee agency said that the number of Syrians who have fled their war-ravaged country has risen to more than 2 million.
Syrian refugees who failed to find shelters in a refugee camp eat and rest by the side of a road a few meters away from the Turkish-Syrian border on Thursday, September 5.
Syrian refugees arrive at the Turkish border gate of Cilvegozu on Thursday, September 5.
Syrian refugees gather in the village of Salkin after crossing the Syrian-Turkish border on September 5.
Children run past tents at a Syrian refugee camp in Yayladagi, Turkey, on September 3.
A child pulls a suitcase as Syrian refugees arrive at the Cilvegozu crossing gate of Reyhanli in Turkey's Hatay province on Saturday, August 31.
A family arrives from Syria at the Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan on Friday, August 30. Currently, Jordan has 515,000 registered Syrian refugees.
A Syrian girl stands behind a fence at Bulgaria's shelter near Lyubimets on August 28. More than 3,100 immigrants -- half of them Syrians -- have crossed into Bulgaria from neighboring Turkey this year, doubling their numbers compared with 2012 and and causing Bulgaria's few temporary accommodation facilities to overflow.
A wounded Syrian child is treated at the Israeli Ziv hospital on Wednesday, August 28, in the northern town of Safed, Israel. About 140 wounded Syrians, who have been fighting across the border from Israel, have been treated in Israeli hospitals since the beginning of the Syrian Civil war.
A Syrian-Kurdish man carries a mattress at sunset at the Quru Gusik refugee camp, east of Arbil, the capital of the autonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq, on Tuesday, August 27. More than 50,000 Syrian refugees have crossed into Iraq's Kurdish region in less than two weeks as authorities rush to house them in more permanent camps.
Syrian refugees listen to safety instructions at the Quru Gusik refugee camp on Saturday, August 24.
Syrian refugees at the Zaatari refugee camp on Thursday, July 18, near the Jordanian city of Mafraq, near the Jordanian-Syrian border.
The expanse of the Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan as seen from an aerial view on July 18. The camp was opened on July 28, 2012, and is home to more than 130,000 refugees.
Syrian refugee children walk in the Bab al-Salam refugee camp in Syria's northern city of Azaz on Monday, July 15.
A boy walks with jugs of water on June 27 in a neighborhood in Beirut, Lebanon, with a high concentration of Syrian refugees. Since January, the number of Syrian refugees in Lebanon has more than tripled.
Syrian refugees stand with their belongings on June 20, World Refugee Day, at Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan.
A Syrian woman and child look out of a refugee camp window on June 20 in Alman, Lebanon, after fleeing their hometown in Idlib province, Syria.
A child, whose family fled violence in Syria, stands at the Arsal refugee camp on June 14 in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley.
A woman uses a fence at the Domiz refugee camp near Kohuk, Iraq, to dry laundry on May 29.
A boy carries a jug for water at the Maliber al-Salam refugee camp on April 28. The camp, located near the Turkish boarder, houses internally displaced Syrian families.
A makeshift refugee camp is seen near Syria's border with Turkey.
Row after row of temporary shelters fill the Maiber al-Salam refugee camp in Syria's Aleppo province, near the Turkish border on April 17.
Refugees fleeing the conflict in Syria arrive February 18 at the Jordanian border.
A Syrian girl stands at the entrance of a makeshift home near ruins in the ancient city of Serjilla in northwestern Syria on February 11. About half of Syria's refugees are children.
More than 400,000 people have fled Syria this year to countries including Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt. The Zaatari refugee camp is in Jordan, near the Syrian border.
A refugee collects apples and some bread February 10 at the Azaz refugee camp along the Syrian-Turkish border. Turkey has spent more than $600 million setting up 17 refugee camps, with more under construction.
Clothes dry at the Qah refugee camp near the Turkish border on January 31. Many Syrians are forced to flee with few or no belongings.
A man shows off his pet birds as new Syrian refugees arrive at the International Organization for Migration at the Zaatari refugee camp on January 30.
A refugee child gets a haircut at a makeshift barbershop at the Azaz refugee camp on February 19.
Syrian children gather around women washing in the Zaatari refugee camp on January 31.
A refugee visits a clinic with his child at the Azaz refugee camp on February 10.
Syrians put up tents at the Zaatari refugee camp on January 30.
The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees supplied tents in Al-Marj, in the eastern Lebanese Bekaa Valley. Some families have endured frigid weather in tent camps or struggle to pay for shelter.
A Syrian girl looks through the window of a bus where she has lived with her family for the past eight months at a refugee camp in Bab al-Salam on the Syria-Turkey border on February 28.
A Syrian jumps across the border between the Syrian town of Ras al-Ain and Ceylanpinar in Turkey's Sanliurfa province on November 10, 2012.
A Syrian refugee waits November 27, 2012, at a hairdresser's shop, where refugees can also receive training, inside the Oncupinar camp in Kilis, southern Turkey.
A Syrian boy attends school in the Turkish town of Kilis on December 17, 2012.
Photos: Syria's refugee crisis
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Photos: Syria's refugee crisis
Syria rebels treat wounded in secret
Kerry said he was grateful for what he called "a strong statement about the need for accountability."
The talks were expected to include "a fairly detailed discussion" of U.S. thinking on potential military action against Syria, senior State Department officials traveling with Kerry said ahead of the meeting. But the ministers would also discuss how to resolve the situation politically, they said.
Ex-Iran minister says he warned of sarin
Syria's government has blamed the chemical attack on opposition fighters, who it describes as terrorists with foreign backing.
Ali-Akbar Salehi, the former foreign minister of Iran, is reported by state news agency IRNA as saying that nine months ago, while he was still in office, he gave the Americans a letter through the Swiss Embassy in Tehran, warning them about the influx of chemical weapons such as sarin gas into Syria.
On Thursday, Britain announced that its military scientists found traces of sarin gas in soil and clothing taken from a patient treated near the site of the alleged August 21 attack. A day earlier, Kerry said that blood and hair samples from near the site "tested positive for signatures of sarin."
The United Nations has said more than 100,000 people -- including many civilians -- have been killed since a popular uprising spiraled into a civil war in 2011. An umbrella group for the rebels said 44 people were killed Saturday.
Syrian activist groups and state media reported heavy clashes in the ancient town of Maaloula, in the Damascus countryside.
The predominantly Christian town, an hour's drive from the capital, is the last surviving place where western Aramaic is spoken, and it holds huge symbolic importance for Syrian Christians.
Russian 'intransigence'
Meanwhile, Kerry appeared alongside French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius in Paris on Saturday, insisting, "This concerns every American's security. This is not remote. This not some far-off place where something happened that's just one Arab sect killing another Arab sect on some internal fight."
Kerry went on to liken al-Assad to Adolf Hitler and Saddam Hussein, citing the three men as the only leaders to deploy internationally banned chemical weapons in the last century. He further accused al-Assad of having "no conscience" about what he does to the Syrian people.
President Bill Clinton always regretted not addressing Rwanda before the African nation spiraled into all-out genocide in 1994, Kerry said the former president has told him, and if the United States doesn't confront Syria soon, it could face more severe manifestations of the threat later. The 1995 sarin attacks on the Tokyo subway are an example of what happens when "ungoverned terrorists call the shots," Kerry said.
Many European countries are opposed to any military action without a U.N. mandate, which the United States has ruled out over what it calls Russian "intransigence" in the U.N. Security Council.
France is the only nation so far to commit to military action against Syria alongside the United States.
Hollande has promised to contribute to a military campaign but, facing political pressure at home, said he would wait for the U.S. Congress to give President Barack Obama authorization to strike and for the findings of the U.N. inspectors' report, which would effectively delay any military action.
Kerry will also meet with Arab League foreign ministers Sunday while in Paris. Those talks initially were to focus on the latest Middle East peace initiative, but Syria is now expected to be on the agenda, the officials told reporters.
Kerry will talk to the Arabs "about things where they may be helpful, and again, also building support within the international community for a response from the international community," one of the officials said.
In all of the meetings Kerry was expected to work to "coordinate a political response" on Syria, but was not expected to go into the details about particular roles countries could play as part of any military action, an official said.
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Kerry will also meet with UK Foreign Secretary William Hague in London. Britain's Parliament has ruled out getting militarily involved in Syria, but Prime Minister David Cameron has pledged to continue to push for a tough response against the Assad regime.
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International opinion divided
Kerry's efforts with European allies paralleled those of his boss, Obama, who tried to rally members of the G20 in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Obama met with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg summit Friday. But despite both saying the talks were constructive, there was no sign of consensus.
International opinion remains divided on what should be done after the Syrian government allegedly used chemical weapons against its own people last month.
A statement issued Friday by a bare majority of the G-20 -- 11 of its 20 members -- said that "the evidence clearly points to the Syrian government being responsible for the attack, which is part of a pattern of chemical weapons use by the regime."
"Those who perpetrated these crimes must be held accountable," it said.
The statement called for a "strong international response" and "supports efforts undertaken by the United States and other countries to reinforce the prohibition on the use of chemical weapons." It did not expressly endorse military action, although U.S. officials said the nations who signed it interpreted the statement as tacit support for strikes.
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle also signed on to the statement Saturday.
Obama has stressed he is considering a limited and targeted mission to respond to the use of chemical weapons and deter the Assad regime from using them again, a point stressed in more than eight hours of testimony on Capitol Hill this week by Kerry, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
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Opposing views
Obama described his exchange with Putin in St. Petersburg as "candid" -- but acknowledged that the Russian president was unlikely to support his call for military action against Syria.
Putin gave reporters a similar account, adding, "He doesn't agree with me, I don't agree with him, but we listened to each other."
Both leaders said they could work together to seek a political solution to the Syrian crisis.
The two men hold opposing views over whether military action should be taken against the Syrian government.
Obama said the world must act to uphold an international ban on chemical weapons use, while Putin repeated the Syrian government's accusation that "militants" used chemical weapons in a bid to get aid and support from "those countries who support them."
He told reporters that Moscow will continue to provide Syria with arms and humanitarian aid. Russia, along with China, has so far opposed military intervention in Syria at the U.N. Security Council.
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Obama's domestic battle
Obama will now seek to rally congressional support for possible U.S. military action against Syria, with a vote expected after lawmakers reconvene from recess on Monday.
The president will give interviews with CNN, PBS, Fox, NBC, ABC and CBS on Monday as he presses his case, a White House official said; the CNN interview will air at 6 p.m. The next day, he'll address the American people on this crisis.
Obama said Friday that he had expected skepticism from the public and from lawmakers, and that he had anticipated it would be "a heavy lift" to win approval for military action from Congress.
In Paris, Kerry spoke of Americans' "Iraq hangover" and said, "We all got burned by that, and we're still paying the price."
The United States, however, can't allow their tentativeness about Iraq strip away the nation's responsibility "to confront real threats today," he said.
Even as Kerry has led calls within the administration for tougher action against Syria, he has sought to work with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on bringing the warring parties in Syria together for negotiations on a political transition.
A senior State Department official said Kerry would be discussing those efforts during his meetings this weekend, although no date has been set yet and the parties have "some distance to go" before the talks could be held.
The United States hopes military action, however limited, could change Al-Assad's calculus and encourage him to negotiate.
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Middle East peace process
Although Syria is sure to top the agenda during Kerry's meetings with foreign diplomats, he will also discuss his efforts to nurture the fledgling Middle East peace process.
After five months of shuttle diplomacy between Israelis and Palestinians, Kerry in July announced a resumption of direct talks between the two sides and tapped former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk as his Mideast peace envoy.
The parties have committed to try and reach a peace deal within nine months, although privately both sides have voiced skepticism that that is possible.
Kerry will meet in London on Sunday with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Another senior State Department official traveling with Kerry said that although the crises in both Syria and Egypt have distracted both the Israelis and Palestinians, they have also yielded important benefits.
Kerry was also expected to lobby EU foreign ministers to reconsider sanctions imposed this summer against Israel, which banned funding of some projects in the occupied West Bank over European opposition to continued settlement building.
CNN's Elise Labott wrote and reported from Vilnius and Laura Smith-Spark from London. CNN's Eliott C. McLaughlin, Nic Robertson, Neda Farshbaf and Bharati Naik contributed to this report.
