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Other developments:

REUTERS:

Russia says too early for U.N. resolution on Syria attack

Hugo Dixon @Hugodixon
2 With Ban-Ki Moon saying inspectors need time and French MPs not voting until Sept 4, UK MPs don’t need to rush. #syria

6:45 AM

Hugo Dixon @Hugodixon
1. UK MPs should delay a vote on #Syria until UN inspectors have finished job and US has published its evidence that Assad is culprit

Agence France-Presse @AFP 27m

#BREAKING US rules out unilateral military action against Syria: official

Agence France-Presse @AFP 53m

#BREAKING Security Council clearance needed before Syria military strike: UN envoy

RT:

11:17 GMT: Saudi Arabia’s armed forces have been placed on high alert amid widespread expectations that Western governments are planning to carry out a military strike against Syria in the coming days.

11:14 GMT: The French parliament is to hold an extraordinary session later Wednesday to discuss the situation in Syria, Reuters cited government spokeswoman Najat Vallaud-Belkacem as saying. “The president has taken the decision to summon parliament on Wednesday to assess the situation in Syria,” she said after a Cabinet meeting.

10:59 GMT: German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle urged members of the UN Security Council, including Russia, to back the UK resolution on Syria expected to be proposed later Wednesday. The resolution will condemn the chemical weapon attacks allegedly carried out by the Assad government and authorize “necessary measures” to protect civilians.

10:32 GMT: The UN’s Syria envoy, Lakhdar Brahimi, said that international law is clear that a Security Council resolution is required for military action.

10:16 GMT: American and British warships deployed in the eastern Mediterranean may carry out a strike on Syria using cruise missiles as soon as in the early hours of Friday, according to Fox News quoting unknown military sources.

9:40 GMT: Israeli intelligence has reportedly intercepted a conversation between Syrian officials concerning the use of chemical weapons, an unnamed former Mossad official told German magazine Focus. The content of the conversation was relayed to the US, the ex-official underlined.

9:20 GMT: The UK has drafted a resolution condemning the chemical weapons attack allegedly carried out by Bashar Assad forces and authorizing “necessary measures” to protect civilian population. The document is to be presented later on Wednesday at a meeting of the five permanent members of the Security Council in New York.

9:16 GMT: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said that the UN inspection team in Syria needs “time to do its job.”

7:37 GMT: An al-Qaeda linked group has threatened a ‘volcano of revenge’ against the Syrian government and military targets in retaliation for the suspected chemical weapons attack in a Damascus suburb last week, Reuters reports.