'Strong signs' Syria used chemical weapons: US official

The United States is increasingly convinced that the Syrian regime was behind a deadly chemical weapons attack last week and Washington is considering possible military action, an official said today.
"There are strong signs pointing in the direction of chemical weapons use" by the Syrian regime, the senior US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told reporters travelling with Pentagon chief Chuck Hagel on a Southeast Asian tour.
"Our confidence is growing that this was in fact an episode involving the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime," the official said.
"The administration is considering its response options in consultation with our international partners."

Hagel planned to speak to his British and French counterparts soon to discuss the crisis, the official said.
At a press conference earlier in Jakarta, Hagel reiterated that any action against Syria would be taken in cooperation with international partners and with a legal basis.

"If there's any action taken, it will be in concert with the international community and within the framework of legal justification," he said after talks with Indonesian Defence Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro.
The comments by Hagel and the senior US official represented the latest sign that the US and its allies were moving towards possible military strikes against Damascus over the use of chemical weapons, which President Barack Obama has portrayed as a "red line".

The US official said President Bashar al-Assad's treatment of UN inspectors who were trying to investigate allegations of a lethal chemical weapons attack represented "classic delaying tactics".
"As time goes on, it's harder and harder to collect, examine and analyse information to reach a conclusion about chemical weapons," the official said.
The official spoke after UN inspectors on the ground in Syria were shot at as they were heading to the site of the alleged attack outside Damascus.
The Obama administration was reportedly examining possible cruise missile strikes against the Assad regime that could be launched from warships in the Mediterranean.

As a showdown loomed with Syria, Hagel was expected to hold more discussions soon with top advisers at the White House about the situation, the official said.
The US president was "consulting closely with his national security team, including the secretary", the official said.
"We're going to continue to mull over our options.