WASHINGTON, Aug. 31-- The White House on Saturday sent Congress a draft resolution that authorizes a U.S. military action against the Syrian government over its alleged use of chemical weapons last week.
Early in the afternoon, President Barack Obama announced that he would first seek authorization from Congress, as demanded by some lawmakers, before acting to punish Syria for its use of sarin gas in an Aug. 21 attack in the suburbs of Damascus, the Syrian capital.
The draft resolution, to be debated and voted in Congress when U.S. lawmakers return to session on Sept. 9 after a summer break, states that the objective of military strikes on Syria should be to "deter, disrupt, prevent and degrade the potential" for future uses of chemical weapons or other weapons of mass destruction.
It also declares that "the conflict in Syria will only be resolved through a negotiated political settlement."
Obama said in his statement that though he has decided to act militarily against Syria government targets, the operation will not be "an open-ended intervention" and will not involve "boots on the ground."
"Instead, our action would be designed to be limited in duration and scope," he said.
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