Obama considers 'limited' military action against Syria

The world has an obligation to make sure that we maintain the law against the use of chemical weapons,” Obama said from the White House’s oval office. “I have not made a final decision about the various actions that might be taken to help us enforce that goal. But, as I already said, I have had my military and our team look at a wide range of options.”

 

The United States claim that it has “no doubt” that Syria was behind last week’s chemical attack also there are two distinct conversations going on about the legitimacy of the West’s expected military campaign against Syrian president Bashar al-Assad

The first has to do with whether military action is an appropriate response to the wanton violation of a near-universally held norm -- in this case, the taboo against the use of chemical weapons, which the Assad regime allegedly violated last week. The second centers on whether military action is an appropriate means for protecting civilian populations from atrocities (of whatever kind) committed by their governments.