French MPs to see 'evidence' of Syria chemical weapons

French PM Jean-Marc Ayrault will present France's evidence that chemical weapons were used in Syria, when he meets parliamentary leaders on Monday.

The dossier is said to show that Syria has stockpiled more than 1,000 tonnes of chemical agents, including sarin.

French President Francois Hollande, like US President Barack Obama, wants punitive military action against Syria.

But there is growing pressure for a parliamentary vote on the issue, to be in line with the US and also Britain.

The alleged chemical attack took place on 21 August in the eastern suburbs of Damascus. The US says more than 1,400 people were killed, including 426 children.

Nato Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has said he is personally convinced that a chemical attack took place and that the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad was responsible.

There must be "a firm international response to deter any future use of such weapons", he said at a news briefing in Brussels.

"It would send, I would say, a dangerous signal to dictators all over the world if we stand idly by and don't react."

Syria's Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad has told the BBC that any such military action would amount to "support for al-Qaeda and its affiliates".

French dossier

The US administration has already presented its case that the Assad regime was behind the attack, and now Mr Ayrault will present France's own intelligence dossier to lawmakers.

"We are going to give the MPs everything we have - classified until now - to enable every one of them to take on board the reality of the unacceptable attack," he said on Monday.

French MPs are due to debate the issue on Wednesday.

US lawmakers are due to reconvene next week, and White House officials have said that when it comes to a vote, they believe there will be enough support for the president.

Campaigning to convince people that military intervention is the right way forward has already begun in America, correspondents say.

By putting off an attack and seeking congressional approval, President Obama has taken the biggest gamble of his presidency, the BBC's North America editor Mark Mardell says.

He adds that it would be disastrous for the president if Congress does not back him, and his decision to call for a vote would look foolish.

In other developments:

UN experts are analysing evidence gathered in Syria to determine whether chemical weapons attacks have taken place

Arab League foreign ministers urged the world community to "take the deterrent and necessary measures" against Syria. But several members - including Lebanon and Iraq - did not back the call

Jordan - a key US ally in the region - ruled out joining any US-led coalition against Damascus

'Hatred for Americans'

Foreign Minister Mekdad told the BBC's Jeremy Bowen in Damascus that any attack against Syria would be "support for al-Qaeda and its affiliates, whether Jabat al-Nusra or the State of Islam in Syria and Iraq".

Jabat al-Nusra and other groups linked to al-Qaeda have come to play a significant anti-Assad role in the conflict.

Mr Mekdad - considered to be highly influential within the Assad' government - also warned that possible US intervention would deepen "hatred for the Americans" and destabilise the whole Middle East.

He said Mr Obama's surprise decision to seek congressional approval for strikes showed that he had not thought through all the consequences.

But he added: "This did not change anything, since he [President Obama] is determined to launch an attack".

As for a vote in Congress, Mr Mekdad said the US Congress would base its decision on whether attacking Syria was in the interests of Israel.

'Case is building'

US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Sunday samples from hair and blood gathered after the 21 August attack had "tested positive for signatures of sarin".

He implied that the US evidence was supplied by its own sources, rather than via the UN inspectors.

The US has previously said it had similar evidence of sarin use in other attacks.

Mr Kerry also said he was confident Congress would give its approval for the US to launch strikes, saying members "will do what is right because they understand the stakes".

He declined to say whether Mr Obama would press ahead even if Congress voted against him.

However, some lawmakers have expressed doubts about Mr Obama's plan for a "limited, narrow" operation.

"It is not clear to me that we know what the results of this attack will be, meaning, will it be effective?" said Jim Himes, a Democratic member of the House of Representatives.

Syria is known to have extensive supplies of chemical weapons.

Mr Obama has often said that using them would cross a "red line", prompting US intervention.

Damascus has been fighting rebel forces since March 2011.

More than 100,000 people are estimated to have died in the conflict, and at least 1.7 million have become refugees.

Forces which could be used against Syria:

• Five US destroyers - USS Gravely, USS Ramage, USS Barry, USS Mahan and USS Stout - are in the eastern Mediterranean, equipped with cruise missiles. The missiles can also be fired from submarines, but the US Navy does not reveal their locations

• Airbases at Incirlik and Izmir in Turkey, and in Jordan, could be used to carry out strikes

• Two aircraft carriers - USS Nimitz and USS Harry S Truman are in the wider region

• French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle is currently in Toulon in the western Mediterranean

• French Rafale and Mirage aircraft can also operate from Al-Dhahra airbase in the UAE