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The US-Russia deal on Syria's chemical weapons is a "victory" that averts war, a Syrian minister says. The framework document says Syria must provide full details of its stockpile within a week - with the chemical arsenal eliminated by mid-2014. If Syria fails to comply, the deal could be enforced by a UN resolution with the use of force as a last resort. The US had threatened to attack Syria which it blames for a chemical attack in August which killed hundreds. President Bashar al-Assad's government denies the allegations and has accused the rebels of carrying out the attack. Syria...

For more than a week, the White House had been barreling toward imminent military action against Syria. But President Barack Obama's abrupt decision to instead ask Congress for permission left him with a high-risk gamble that could devastate his credibility if no action is ultimately taken in response to a deadly chemical weapons attack that crossed his own "red line." The stunning reversal also raises questions about the president's decisiveness and could embolden leaders in Syria, Iran, North Korea and elsewhere, leaving them with the impression of a U.S. president unwilling to back up his words with actions. The president,...

The Obama administration made public its case that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was responsible for a chemical-weapons attack outside Damascus, bracing Americans for potential strikes in the coming days. President Barack Obama said he hasn't made a decision on military strikes on Syria, even as U.S. forces continued a buildup in the Middle East on Friday and the White House took the rare step of releasing a detailed U.S. intelligence assessment. The U.S. findings, based on intercepted communications, satellite images and human spying, were released to underpin Mr. Obama's assertions that the Assad regime was responsible for the attack, which...

AMMAN, Jordan (AP) - Al-Qaida plotted bombings and poison gas attacks against the U.S. Embassy and other targets in Jordan, two conspirators said in a confession aired Monday on Jordanian state television. Azmi al-Jayousi, identified as the head of the Jordanian cell of al-Qaida, appeared Monday in a 20-minute taped program and described meeting Jordanian militant Abu-Musab al-Zarqawi in neighboring Iraq to plan the foiled plot. A commentator said the plotters wanted to kill "80,000" Jordanians and had targeted the prime minister's office, intelligence headquarters and the U.S. Embassy. Another Jordanian suspect, car mechanic Hussein Sharif Hussein, was shown saying...