Britain's Hague: Syria response possible without unanimous UN backing

It is possible to respond to chemical weapons without unanimous UN Security Council backing, British Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Monday, referring to an alleged chemical weapon attack in Syria. "Is it possible to respond to chemical weapons without complete unity on the UN Security Council? I would argue yes it is, otherwise it might be impossible to respond to such outrages, such crimes, and I don't think that's an acceptable situation," he told the BBC. "We, the United States and many other countries including France are very clear that we can't allow the idea in the 21st century that chemical weapons can be used with impunity," he said. When asked about whether action could be taken this week, the foreign secretary said, "I'm not going to rule anything in or out, I'm not going to speculate about that in public." The Syrian opposition accused the government forces of killing 1,300 people in recent chemical attacks, which was denied by the Syrian government. The UN chemical investigation team will enter the eastern al-Ghouta countryside of the Syrian capital Damascus Monday to start an on-site probe.