BEIRUT-U.N. inspectors attempting to visit the site of an alleged chemical weapons attack in eastern Damascus were forced to turn back on Monday after their convoy came under what the United Nations described as intentional fire.
The team plans to try again to access the area within a few hours, a U.N. statement issued in New York said. In the meantime, three key U.S. allies indicated on Monday that they would back the Obama administration if it decides to take action against Syria without a United Nations mandate.
The first vehicle of the Chemical Weapons Investigation Team was in a buffer zone between government and rebel positions when it was “deliberately shot at multiple times by unidentified snipers,” the U.N. statement said.
No one was hurt, but because the car was no longer serviceable, the team returned to government-held territory.
The United Nations did not say which side had fired the shots. It urged “all sides .
The team plans to try again to access the area within a few hours, a U.N. statement issued in New York said. In the meantime, three key U.S. allies indicated on Monday that they would back the Obama administration if it decides to take action against Syria without a United Nations mandate.
The first vehicle of the Chemical Weapons Investigation Team was in a buffer zone between government and rebel positions when it was “deliberately shot at multiple times by unidentified snipers,” the U.N. statement said.
No one was hurt, but because the car was no longer serviceable, the team returned to government-held territory.
The United Nations did not say which side had fired the shots. It urged “all sides .