Obama refusing to act on Syria gas atrocity

US President Barack Obama called the apparent gassing of hundreds of Syrian civilians a “big event of grave concern” but stressed yesterday he was in no rush to embroil Americans in a costly new war.

As opponents of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad braved the frontlines around Damascus to smuggle tissue samples to UN inspectors from victims of Wednesday’s mass poisoning, Obama brushed over an interviewer’s reminder that he once called chemical weapons a “red line” that could trigger US action.

His caution contrasted with calls for action from Nato allies, including France, Britain and Turkey, where leaders saw little doubt Assad’s forces had staged pre-dawn missile strikes that rebels say killed between 500 and 1,000 people.