(CNN) -- President Barack Obama made his case Tuesday night both for military intervention and diplomacy to address the crisis in Syria, all part of a speech that made international strikes appear less imminent but not an end to the Middle Eastern nation's years of carnage.
Tuesday's developments -- including Syria agreeing to a Russian plan to give up its chemical weapons -- appeared to move the world further away from a more regional war. Yet many roadblocks and pressing questions remain as to what's next for Syria, where the civil war that's left over 100,000 dead continues to rage.
LIVE BLOG: Obama's national address
A mother comforts her baby in an area where she and her family have taken shelter after fleeing their village turned battlefield in Syria's Idlib province on Sunday, September 22. More than 100,000 people reportedly have been killed in Syria since a popular uprising spiraled into a civil war in 2011. Syria has agreed to a Russian-U.S. timeline for the removal of its chemical weapons, but the plan has to be sanctioned as a U.N. resolution. Click through to view the most compelling images taken since the start of the conflict:
Syrian civil war in photos
Report: Syria ready to disclose weapons
Syria accepts deal on chemical weapons
Kerry: Syria deal must be real, swift
McCain: 'I am very skeptical'
Latest developments:
• Obama said Tuesday night that military strikes against Syrian forces would be justified, given the indications he pointed to that the Damascus government planned and then executed a horrific chemical weapons attack on a rebel stronghold that left hundreds dead.
• The U.S. president also referred to positive developments diplomatically -- namely, a Russian-led effort to have Syria hand over its chemical weapons -- that led him to encourage Congress not to vote yet on authorizing military intervention in Syria.
• Immediately after Obama's speech, Syrian state TV reported that the president had urged Congress to postpone any vote on a strike and was focused more on diplomatic efforts to deal with the crisis.
• While previous polls indicated strong opposition to military strikes, a CNN/ORC International survey of speech-watchers conducted immediately after Obama's Tuesday address found that 61% support the president's position of giving more time for diplomatic efforts to work before moving forward with military strikes.
• Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem said Tuesday, before leaving Moscow, that his government is "ready to fully cooperate" with a Russian initiative that would include Damascus joining the Chemical Weapons Convention and turning over its chemical weapons.
"We are ready to disclose the location(s) of chemical weapons, stop manufacturing chemical weapons, also show the locations to representatives from Russia and other countries and the U.N.," Moallem said in his remarks, as translated from Arabic.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that the plan to avert an international military strike in Syria by having Syria's government hand over its chemical weapons "will only mean anything if the United States and other nations supporting it tell us that they're giving up their plan to use force against Syria."
The Russian leader added, "You can't really ask Syria, or any other country, to disarm unilaterally while military action against it is being contemplated."
Previous developments:
Obama's speech
• In a televised speech Tuesday night, President Obama said "the situation (in Syria) profoundly changed on August 21," referring to a chemical weapons attack he blames on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
• With that attack, Syria's government violated the "basic rules" of warfare, Obama said. "The facts cannot be denied," he added. "The question now is what the United States of America (will) do about it."
• The U.S. president accused Syrian forces of preparing for the August 21 attacks, passing out gas masks, then firing rockets into a rebel stronghold outside Damascus.
• "I will not put American boots on the ground in Syria," Obama said. He also vowed not to "pursue an open-ended action" in the war-torn country.
• At the same time, the president insisted "the United States military doesn't do pinpricks" -- a term used often by members of his administration in recent days, addressing concerns that a military strike on Syria would have minimal impact." "Even a limited strike will send a message to Assad," Obama said, "that no other nation can deliver."
• Targeted military strikes against Syria would serve several purposes, including deterring Syria's government from using chemical weapons, making it more difficult for them to do so and making clear to the world that the use of chemical weapons won't be tolerated, Obama said.
• President Barack Obama pointed Tuesday night to "encouraging signs" in diplomatic efforts to address the crisis in Syria, crediting these "in part because of the credible threat of U.S. military action." These efforts could include Syria handing over its chemical weapons, a move that Obama said has the potential to remove the threat of chemical weapons without military intervention.
• The United States and its military will "be in position to respond if diplomacy fails" to address the crisis in Syria, Obama said, not ruling out military intervention in the war-torn country.
• Responding to the speech, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus responded with blanket condemnation of Obama's policies, saying "the administration's handling of the U.S. response to Syria has been so haphazard it's disappointed even the president's most ardent supporters."
• Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham and John McCain -- both of whom have pushed for more U.S. military involvement in Syria -- expressed "regret" that the president "did not speak more forcefully about the need to increase our military assistance to moderate opposition forces" and that he "did not lay out a clearer plan to test the seriousness of the Russian and Syrian proposal to transfer the Assad regime's chemical weapons to international custody."
• The Progressive Change Campaign Committee, a left-leaning advocacy group that has been opposed to military action in Syria, focused on Obama's opening the door to diplomacy as "a credible and strategic option," which shows that "public pressure worked."
Diplomacy
• Kerry and Lavrov have been appointed by their respective presidents as the point people on the Syrian chemical weapons issue, a senior U.S. administration official said Tuesday. The two diplomats have talked nine times since the August 21 attack in the Damascus area.
• U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will bring a team of experts with him for talks, beginning Thursday in Geneva, Switzerland, with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, senior State Department officials said Tuesday. Another U.S. official said this group will include weapons of mass destruction and chemical weapons experts from the U.S. military. The Kerry-Lavrov meeting will include several sessions spread across two days, officials said, cautioning that the issue may not be resolved by then.
If and when an accord is reached, it will be included as part of a U.N. Security Council resolution, according to the officials.
• When the two diplomats meet, the Obama administration's position will be that "we need a verifiable process under international control with timelines and modalities worked out with the Russians and through the United Nations," a second senior administration official said.
• Russia will propose a U.N. draft declaration backing an initiative to put Syrian chemical weapons under international control, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Tuesday. Lavrov has told France that its own draft resolution holding the Syrian government responsible for the use of chemical weapons is "unacceptable."
• France is planning to offer a five-point U.N. Security Council resolution, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said. The points include condemning the August 21 massacre, having Syria shed light on its weapons of mass destruction and placing them under international control, having international inspections, forcing Syria to face severe consequences if it violates its obligations, and submitting the perpetrators of the August 21 massacre to international justice.
• Putin said the United States and its allies should "pledge to renounce the use of force" as world powers work to deal with the Syrian chemical weapons issue. "It is difficult to make any country -- Syria or any other country in the world -- to unilaterally disarm if there is military action against it under consideration," he told Russian TV on Tuesday.
• French President Francois Hollande, British Prime Minister David Cameron and Obama agreed Tuesday to work together to explore the Russian proposal seriously, a White House official said. The talks will begin in earnest at the United Nations later Tuesday and will include a discussion on a potential U.N. Security Council resolution.
• The opposition Syrian Coalition said Tuesday that the Russian proposal to put Syria's chemical weapons under international control "is a political strategy that aims to stall for more time" and "does not address the issue of accountability for crimes against innocents."
• The Gulf Cooperation Council -- a coalition that consists of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait -- expressed pessimism Tuesday that Russia's proposal on chemical weapons would have a major impact. "All the talks were about one subject, which is chemical weapons," Bahraini Foreign Minister Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed al-Khalifa said. "But that doesn't stop the spilling of blood, (and it) will not help the Syrian people."
• Syrian Prime Minister Wael Nader Al-Halqi said Damascus supports the Russian initiative, Syria state TV reported. The plan "aims to stop the Syrian bloodshed and prevent a war," Al-Halqi said. "Yesterday we held a very fruitful round of talks with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, and from his side, there was a proposal for an initiative relating to chemical weapons. And by evening (Monday) we agreed to the Russian initiative," Moallem said. He said Syria had agreed because it would "remove grounds for American aggression."
• Russia said it's working on a plan for Syria to hand over chemical weapons. "We, the Russian side, are currently engaged in the preparation of a workable, clear, specific plan for which -- literally this minute -- we are in contact with the Syrian side," Lavrov said. "We expect to present this plan in the near future and are prepared to refine and work it out with the participation of the U.N. secretary-general, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, and with the participation of the members of the Security Council."
• Kerry said Tuesday that Russia's foreign minister is sending along "some interesting observations about the ways in which he thinks we might be able to achieve" having Syria turn over its chemical weapons. Speaking in a Google+ Hangout, Kerry said the fact Syria's president "has been running a highly controlled and very hierarchical process" leads Washington to believe that Syria's government "can control access to these sites."
• China welcomes and supports Russia's proposal to have Syria hand over chemical weapons to international control, the Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman said Tuesday.
• Iran said it welcomes the Russian initiative for Syria "to put a halt to militarism in the region," according to a banner on state-run Press TV's website.
• Iranian President Hassan Rouhani -- whose nation has been a longtime ally of Syria and staunch adversary of the United States, which has led efforts to stymie Iran's nuclear program -- said Tuesday on Press TV that Iran is willing to do whatever it can to prevent a broader regional war he surmised would be "very dangerous ... first of all for those who would initiate that war." Speaking of weapons of mass destruction, which include nuclear as well as chemical weapons, Rouhani said, "We would like to see a WMD-free region, including chemical weapons."
• Russia has withdrawn its request for an emergency U.N. Security Council meeting on the Syrian crisis that had been set for later Tuesday afternoon, a U.N. diplomat said. Russia, which has been a key player in efforts to have Syria give up its chemical weapons, dropped its request due to "changing circumstances," according to the diplomat.
• France had planned to go to the Security Council on Tuesday with its proposal for Syria to hand over and destroy its chemical weapons, Fabius said. He said France will not accept "delaying tactics." It was not clear how the cancellation of Tuesday afternoon's meeting affected the French approach, if at all.
• There are consultations with France and others about how to move quickly at the United Nations to test whether Russia and Syria are serious about the initiative to place chemical weapons under international control, a senior U.S. administration official said.
• Obama and Putin, despite their chilly relationship, have been talking for roughly a year about the issue of Syria's chemical weapons stockpiles, a senior U.S. administration official said Tuesday.
• Eight more countries have signed onto a statement to "support efforts undertaken by the United States and other countries to reinforce the prohibition on the use of chemical weapons," the White House announced Tuesday. Georgia, Guatemala, Kuwait, Malta, Montenegro, Panama, Poland and Portugal join 25 other countries in agreeing to the joint statement.
• A 22-year-old man died Tuesday in southern Turkey during a clash between police in that country and demonstrators rallying against the prospect of a broader international war in neighboring Syria, his mother said. Police released video showing protesters throwing stones at armored vehicles from rooftops, yet witnesses claimed Ahmet Atakan -- who is an Alawite, the same Muslim sect as Syria's leadership -- died after being shot in the head with a tear gas canister.
• As the diplomatic debate continued to rage about what to do regarding Syria, the death toll in the war-ravaged nation rose. According to the opposition Local Coordination Committees of Syria, 76 deaths were reported Tuesday around the country, including seven children and five women. The United Nations estimates more than 100,000 people have died since the civil war began in 2001, with more than 2 million people crossing borders as refugees and another 4.25 million displaced within Syria.
Rep. Israel: Russia stepped up to plate
Searching for the evidence in Syria
Obama considers his options on Syria
Why Israel is staying on Syria sidelines
U.S. Congress and government
• The Syrian regime has "about 1,000 metric tons of numerous chemical agents, binary components, including finished sulfur, mustard, binary components for sarin and VX," Kerry told a House committee on Tuesday. "Most of that is in the form of unmixed binary components, probably stored mostly in tanks. But they also possess sarin-filled munitions and other things I can't go into here."
• A White House official told CNN that since August 23, the Obama administration has had discussions with at least 93 senators and more than 350 House members regarding Syria. In addition to the president's efforts and his much-anticipated speech on Syria scheduled for Tuesday night, Vice President Joe Biden met with a group of House Republicans and House Democrats at the White House, the official said.
• Democratic House Leader Nancy Pelosi said the Russian plan has "given the president a victory" and said White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough has told House Democrats, "if it is serious, if it is credible, if it is real, will be given every consideration." Democratic leaders say the plan doesn't take the wind out of the administration's efforts but "validates what the president is doing," Pelosi said.
• U.S. Rep. Brad Sherman met Tuesday with Sergey Kislyak, Russia's ambassador to the United States, to discuss Moscow's proposal to have Syria give up its chemical weapons, the California Democrat said. Sherman, a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, called the meeting informative and said he believes "the Russian proposal deserves very serious attention to develop the details needed to carry it out."
• A White House official said the feeling inside the White House is that, given the Russian proposal on Syria's chemical weapons, there is now less urgency for a vote on taking action against the country. However, White House officials believe their position has been strengthened since Syria embraced the Russian proposal to place the country's chemical weapons under international control. At this point, White House officials believe they can let diplomacy take its course, the official said.
• In meetings with Senate Democrats and Senate Republicans -- each lasting more than an hour -- President Obama asserted that U.S. intelligence assessments indicate that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government was responsible for a large-scale chemical weapons attack on August 21 outside Damascus, a White House official said.
While reiterating his position that a targeted military strike (without having troops set foot in Syria) was in the national security interests of the United States, the president said that his administration would work to pursue the diplomatic option put forward by Russia, which would involve Syria handing over its chemical weapons, the official said.
• Obama stressed during those meetings with U.S. senators the need to keep open the option of a military strike against Syria, said Sen. Tom Carper. According to the Delaware Democrat, Obama spoke for 10 to 12 minutes, then fielded questions from about 15 senators.
"If we don't keep that threat open," Carper said in summarizing the president, "they may very well walk away."
After the same meeting, Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-California, said she felt Obama is working towarda successful diplomatic resolution that would culminate in the documented destruction of the Syrian government's stockpile of chemical weapons.
• Kerry said Tuesday that the use of force "absolutely should not be off the table" in Congress despite the Russian proposal. But he told House lawmakers that when and how is up to Obama. "The Senate has made a decision to hold off to see if there are any legs in this Russia proposal," Kerry said, referring to the postponement of a procedural vote scheduled for Wednesday.
• Speaking later Tuesday in the Google+ Hangout, the secretary of state acknowledged that "some things" from the U.S. government have not gotten to opponents of Syria's al-Assad "as rapidly as one would have hoped." Without detailing what items were heading toward what he called "the moderate opposition," Kerry said "many of the items that people complained were not getting to them are now getting to them."
• Under a new resolution being proposed in the U.S. House of Representatives, Obama would have 30 days to work out a "credible plan" regarding Syria's chemical weapons before he'd be allowed to order strikes, Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Maryland, told CNN's Christiane Amanpour.
• Explaining the evolving timing of U.S. Senate votes on Syria in light of recent developments, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid reiterated Tuesday, "It's important that we do this well, not quickly." The Nevada Democrat added that "the credible threat of our doing something about this (chemical weapons) attack is going to remain."
Reid's comments came after Obama asked Senate Democrats to delay voting on authorizing military action in Syria while the diplomatic process works itself out, according to senators in the meeting. The president "asked for some time to work things out -- a matter of days into next week," Sen. Dick Durbin said.
• Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced Tuesday evening that he is canceling a briefing on Syria that had been planned for Wednesday for all senators, explaining that there are just too many moving targets at the moment.
• Sen. Joe Manchin -- a West Virginia Democrat who last week had pushed an initiative to put off military action while demanding Syria signs an international convention against chemical weapons -- said Tuesday that he is "encouraged" that Syria's government has decided to sign on to such an agreement. "I have said from the start that being a superpower means more than super-military might; it means super-diplomacy and super-restraint," Manchin said in a statement.
• A bipartisan group of U.S. senators is working on an alternative resolution that would set key benchmarks to be met in order to avoid a military strike against Syria, according to a source familiar with the talks.
• Testifying before the House Armed Services Committee on Tuesday, Kerry told lawmakers that a "credible threat of force" in recent weeks has for the "first time" prompted the Syrian regime "to even acknowledge that they have a chemical weapons arsenal." He added that a Russian proposal to turn over Syria's chemical weapons stockpile can't be a process for "delay" or "avoidance."
• Kerry also warned the committee that Iran, a close ally of Syria, "looms out there with its nuclear program." "They are watching what we do here. If we choose not to act, we will be sending a message to Iran of American ambivalence, American weakness," he said.
• U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, an Illinois Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told CNN's Jake Tapper on Tuesday that he believes there needs to be a detailed timeline for Syria to hand over its chemical weapons. Referring to the Moscow-led efforts calling for such a transfer in the face of threatened U.S.-led military strikes in Syria, Kinzinger said, "It's important to understand that the Russians may be trying to stall here."
• The top-ranking Republican in the Senate said Tuesday that he will vote against authorizing military action against Syria. "A vital national security risk is clearly not at play. There are just too many unanswered questions about our long-term strategy in Syria," Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said in a speech on the floor of the Senate.
• On CNN's "New Day," Sen. John McCain upbraided the Obama administration's discussions of Syria. "There's a degree of incoherence that I have never seen the likes of," the Arizona Republican said. He noted that Kerry said any strike on Syria would be "unbelievably small." "What does that mean?" McCain asked. "We still haven't determined what the goal of these military strikes are."
• Frederic Hof, who served as a special adviser to Obama on Syria during its ongoing civil war, told CNN's Christiane Amanpour that he's a "bit skeptical" of the Russian proposal on chemical weapons, further pointing out that Monday was the first day Syria's government ever admitted to having such an arsenal.
In his speech Tuesday night, "The president absolutely has to get across (the point) that diplomacy is not possible without the credible use of force remaining on the table," said Hof, now a senior fellow with the Atlantic Council think tank. "Absent that, the Russian proposal will go away."
• While U.S. forces are in position and capable of striking immediately, the Pentagon needs more guidance from President Barack Obama about time frames for a possible strike against Syria, a senior U.S. military official said.
The official noted that the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz can't stay in the Red Sea much longer as it is already overdue to go home, while destroyer ships in the area will also need to be switched out. "The question is how long do we stay at a certain ... high-readiness level," the official said.
Can Obama sway the nation on Syria?
American public opinion
• A new national poll suggests that as Obama prepares to tell a skeptical American public why the United States should take military action against Syria, he's partly to blame for the box into which he's put himself.
• The CNN/ORC International Poll indicates that Americans are divided evenly on whether Obama is a strong leader as well as whether he's honest and trustworthy.
• The poll also found that one in five said they completely understand Obama's Syria policy. A little more than half said they "somewhat" understand the administration's game plan, and about three in 10 said they are not clear about the administration's strategy or don't understand it at all.
CNN's Joe Sterling contributed to this report.
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A man checks an AK-47 at his gun shop in Aleppo, Syria, on Saturday, September 21.
Free Syrian Army fighters take cover moments after firing a rocket toward government forces in the Idlib province of northern Syria on Friday, September 20.
Free Syrian Army fighters take cover during clashes with government forces in Idlib province on September 20.
Rebel fighters inspect a stairwell amid fighting against Syrian government forces on Thursday, September 19, in the Saif al-Dawla district of Aleppo, Syria.
A Syrian child sits in a village in the Idlib province countryside on Septeptember 19.
Opposition fighters react after returning from the battlefield in the Idlib province countryside on September 19.
Smoke rises after a bomb was thrown from a helicopter, hitting a rebel position during heavy fighting between troops loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and opposition fighters in the Idlib province on September 19.
A Syrian opposition fighter watches as heavy fighting erupts in the neighboring village of Kafr Nabuda in the Idlib province on September 19.
Rebel fighters aim their weapons during fighting against Syrian government forces on September 19 in the Saif al-Dawla district of Aleppo.
Rebel fighters duck behind a barricade from firing in Aleppo on Wednesday, September 18.
AFP reporter Sammy Ketz hits the ground as a Syrian soldier runs past during sniper fire in Maalula on September 18. Ketz and a photographer were reporting on the ancient Christian Syrian town northeast of Damascus.
A Syrian opposition fighter takes a break on a mountain near a rebel camp in Idlib province on September 18.
A Free Syrian Army fighter rests inside a cave at a rebel camp in Idlib province on Tuesday, September 17.
Rebels gather on a square in Damascus' Shebaa district on September 17.
Volunteers wear protective gear to show a class how to respond to a chemical attack in Aleppo, Syria, on September 15. For two months, Mohammad Zayed, an Aleppo University student, has been training a group of 26 civilians to respond to a chemical attack.
Syria's pro-Assad militia rest near Maalula, Syria, on Friday, September 13.
Pro-Assad soldiers leave a checkpoint that they control in Maalula, Syria, on September 13.
Syrian soldiers take aim at rebel fighters positioned in the mountains of the Christian town of Maalula on September 13.
Rebels parade at a former military academy north of Aleppo during a September 13 ceremony to mark an agreement to unite two rebel brigade forces.
A fighter of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine General Command squats next to the covered body of an alleged foreign rebel fighter in the Yarmouk refugee camp in the Syrian capital of Damascus on Thursday, September 12.
An opposition fighter runs in front of a sniper curtain in the industrial area of Deir Ezzor, Syria, during clashes with regime forces on September 12.
A sheet hangs across an alley way to shield fighters from sniper fire as a fighter of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine General Command walks past destroyed buildings in the Yarmouk refugee camp in Damascus, Syria, on September 12.
A Syrian pro-government soldier aims his rifle as he patrols the streets of the Christian town of Maalula on Wednesday, September 11.
A Free Syrian Army fighter stands guard inside a damaged house in Aleppo's Qastal al-Harami neighborhood on September 11.
Free Syrian Army fighters climb a flight of stairs to take positions near the Hanano barracks on September 11.
A Syrian government tank is seen during clashes with Free Syrian Army fighters in Maaloula, Syria, on September 11.
A funeral is held on September 11 for three Christian Syrians killed during battles with an al Qaeda-linked rebel group that took control of the historic Christian town of Maaloula from regime forces during the weekend.
A man walks through a destroyed residential area of Saraqib, Syria, on Monday, September 9, following repeated airstrikes by government forces.
A soldier wears a picture of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on his chest while at a market in old Damascus on September 8.
A Free Syrian Army fighter prays in a trench in the Damascus suburbs on September 8.
A Free Syrian Army fighter takes up a shooting position in Aleppo on September 8.
A Free Syrian Army fighter runs for cover in Raqqa province on September 8.
Buildings are heavily damaged in the Salah al-Din area of Aleppo on September 8.
A boy named Issa, 10, carries a mortar shell in a weapons factory of the Free Syrian Army in Aleppo on Saturday, September 7. The boy works with his father in the factory.
Issa fixes a mortar launcher in the Aleppo weapons factory on September 7.
A bedroom lies in ruins after clashes between government forces and rebels around Ariha on September 7.
Rebels prepare explosive devices for fighting with government forces on September 7 in Deir Ezzor.
Syrian forces are seen in the Syrian Christian town of Maaloula on September 7.
A Syrian soldier prepares large-caliber bullets for a machine gun in Maaloula on September 7.
A man stands inside a home damaged by heavy shelling in Arbeen, a suburb of Damascus, Syria, on September 7.
Men gather on the remains of a destroyed building after reported airstrikes by Syrian government forces in the rebel-held northwestern Syrian province of Idlib on Thursday, September 5.
Men observe the wreckage of a motorbike in the Syrian province of Idlib on September 5. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights watchdog said that Syrian war planes bombed rebel-held areas in Idlib, Aleppo, Hama and Lattakia.
A Free Syrian Army fighter looks through a hole from behind sandbags, while a fellow fighter reads the Quran in Deir Ezzor, Syria, on Tuesday, September 3. The United States and other Western nations blame the Assad regime for a chemical weapons attack that's believed to have killed more than 1,400 people.
A Free Syrian Army fighter takes cover as he watches forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad near Hanano barracks in Aleppo on September 3.
A Free Syrian Army fighter is seen through a hole in a wall of a building in Aleppo on September 3.
Free Syrian Army fighters walk inside a damaged house in Aleppo on September 3.
A Free Syrian Army fighter walks through a hole in a wall in Aleppo on September 3.
Free Syrian Army fighters talk inside a burnt house in Aleppo on September 3.
A Free Syrian Army fighter peeks through the curtains of a bedroom in Deir ez-Zor, Syria, on Monday, September 2.
Free Syrian Army fighters take their positions behind piled sandbags, as one of them points his weapon, in Deir ez-Zor on September 2.
A rebel fighter points his weapon at Syrian regime forces in Deir ez-Zor on September 2.
Syrian firefighters try to extinguish a fire after a missile hit a residential building in Damascus, Syria, on September 2.
A U.N. arms expert collects samples during an inspection of a suspected chemical weapons strike site in the Ghouta area outside Damascus on August 29.
People search for belongings in rubble in Raqqa, Syria, on August 29.
Free Syrian Army fighters launch a rocket toward forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Deir Ezzor on August 29.
A Syrian Kurd uses hay to hide another woman in a training session organized by the Kurdish Women's Defense Units on Wednesday, August 28, in a northern Syrian border village. They're preparing if the area comes under attack.
Free Syrian Army fighters escort U.N. vehicles with chemical weapons experts on August 28 through a site of a suspected chemical weapons attack outside Damascus.
A Free Syrian Army fighter takes position behind sandbags in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, on Tuesday, August 27.
A U.N. team leaves its Damascus, Syria, hotel in a convoy on Monday, August 26. The team was to investigate an alleged chemical attack that killed hundreds last week in a suburb of the Syrian capital. Sniper fire hit a vehicle used by the U.N. chemical weapons investigation team multiple times Monday, according to the United Nations.
A Syrian soldier walks down a street in Damascus on Saturday, August 24.
Pigeons lie dead on the ground on August 24 from after what activists say is the use of chemical weapons by government forces in the Damascus suburb of Arbeen.
Columns of smoke rise in Barzeh after heavy shelling on Friday, August 23.
A young Free Syrian Army fighter is reflected in a mirror as he takes position in a house in Aleppo on Thursday, August 22.
Rebels move around a building in Aleppo on August 22.
Syrian rebels claim pro-government forces used chemical weapons to kill citizens outside Damascus on Wednesday, August 21. People inspect bodies in this photo released by the Syrian opposition Shaam News Network.
People search the rubble of a bombed building in Aleppo, Syria, on Friday, August 16.
Men bury the bodies of six members of the same family killed in a bombing in Raqqa on Saturday, August 10.
Syrian Army soldiers patrol a devastated street in Homs on Wednesday, July 31.
Free Syrian Army fighters move through a hole in a wall in Khan al-Assal on Monday, July 22, after seizing the town.
A rebel fighter walks past swings in a deserted playground in Deir al-Zor, Syria, on Sunday, July 21.
A rebel fighter speaks with a fellow fighter through a hole in a wall in Deir al-Zor on July 21.
A Free Syrian Army fighter casts a shadow on a wall as he carries his weapon in a shelter in Deir al-Zor on Thursday, July 18.
Yahya Sweed, 13, is comforted by his father as he lies on a bed in Kfar Nubul on Tuesday, July 16. The boy was injured by shrapnel, resulting in the amputation of his right leg.
A rebel fighter naps in a trench about 300 feet from the Syrian government forces' positions along the highway connecting Idlib with Latakia on Monday, July 15.
A rebel fighter uses a hole in the wall of a destroyed school to aim at Syrian government forces in the Izaa district of Aleppo on Sunday, July 14.
A Free Syrian Army fighter uses a mirror to scope out snipers loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo on Friday, July 12.
A Free Syrian Army fighter stands over a boy who was injured during shelling in Al-Bara on Monday, July 8.
Members of the Free Syrian Army fire a homemade rocket toward regime forces in Deir al-Zor on Sunday, June 16.
Syrian rebels leave their position in the northwestern town of Maaret al-Numan on Thursday, June 13. The White House said that the Syrian government has crossed a "red line" with its use of chemical weapons and announced it would start arming the rebels.
Forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad are seen near Qusayr on Thursday, May 30.
Syrian rebels take position in a house during clashes with regime forces in the old city of Aleppo on May 22.
Syrian army soldiers take control of the village of Western Dumayna north of the rebel-held city of Qusayr on Monday, May 13. Syrian troops captured three villages in Homs province, allowing them to cut supply lines to rebels inside Qusayr town, a military officer told AFP.
Rebel fighters fire at government forces in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo on Sunday, May 12.
Searchers use a flashlight as they look for survivors among the rubble created by what activists say was a missile attack from the Syrian regime, in Raqqa province, Syria, on April 25.
A Kurdish fighter from the "Popular Protection Units" (YPG) takes position inside a building in the majority-Kurdish Sheikh Maqsood area of Aleppo, on Apri. 21.
People walk past destroyed houses in the northern Syrian town of Azaz on Sunday, April 21.
Free Syrian Army fighters take positions prior to an offensive against government forces in the Khan al-Assal area, near Aleppo on Saturday, April 20.
Men inspect damage at a house destroyed in an airstrike in Aleppo on April 15.
Syrian and Kurdish rebel fighters walk in the Sheikh Maqsud district of Aleppo on April 14.
A female rebel monitors the movement of Syrian government forces in Aleppo's Sheikh Maqsud neighborhood on Thursday, April 11.
A rebel runs to avoid sniper fire from Syrian government forces in Aleppo on April 11.
Syrian rebels observe the movement of Syrian government forces around Al-Kendi hospital in Aleppo on Wednesday, April 10.
Rescue teams and security forces check out the scene of a deadly car bomb explosion in Damascus on April 8.
The fighting has taken a toll on buildings in Aleppo's Saladin district, seen here on April 8.
A Syrian rebel runs for cover in Deir ez-Zor on April 2.
A rebel checks for snipers across the street toward the Citadel in Aleppo, Syria, on Saturday, March 30, in this photo taken by iReporter Lee Harper.
A Free Syrian fighter mourns the death of a friend in Aleppo on March 30, in this photo taken by iReporter Lee Harper.
A Syrian opposition fighter runs for cover from Syrian army snipers in Aleppo on Wednesday, March 27.
A Syrian girl covers her face to protect herself from fumes as a street covered with uncollected garbage is fumigated in Aleppo on Sunday, March 24.
A Syrian man and his family drive past damaged buildings in Maarat al-Numan, on Wednesday, March 20.
Syrians carry the body of a Syrian army soldier during a funeral ceremony in Idlib province on Tuesday, March 19.
Syrian rebels take position in Aleppo, the largest city in the country, on March 11.
Syrian men search for their relatives amongst the bodies of civilians executed and dumped in the Quweiq River on March 11.
A Free Syrian Army fighter looks back as smoke rises during fighting between rebel fighters and forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad on the outskirts of Aleppo on Saturday, March 2.
Residents read Shaam News newspapers published by the Free Syrian Army in Aleppo on March 2.
A member of the Free Syrian Army reacts to the death of a comrade who was killed in fighting, at Bustan al Qasr cemetery in Aleppo on Friday, March 1.
A rebel fighter throws a home-made grenade at Syrian government forces in Aleppo on February 16.
A member of the Free Syrian Army stands with his weapon as he looks at a rainbow in Aleppo on February 16.
A Syrian woman looks through a bus window in Aleppo on February 14.
Free Syrian Army fighters walk through a dust-filled stairwell in Damascus on February 7.
A Syrian rebel gestures at comrades from inside a broken armored personnel carrier in Al-Yaqubia on February 6.
A rebel fighter throws a hand grenade inside a Syrian Army base in Damascus on February 3.
People stand in the dust of a building destroyed in an airstrike in Aleppo, Syria on February 3.
Free Syrian Army fighters run as they enter a Syrian Army base during heavy fighting in the Arabeen neighborhood of Damascus on February 3.
An unexploded mortar shell fired by the Syrian Army sits lodged in the ground in Damascus on January 25.
Fighters from Fateh al Sham unit of the Free Syrian Army fire on Syrian Army soldiers at a check point in Damascus on January 20.
A Free Syrian Army fighter walks between buildings damaged during Syrian Air Force strikes in Damascus on January 19.
A Syrian rebel fighter tries to locate a government jet fighter in Aleppo on January 18.
Syrian rebels launch a missile near the Abu Baker brigade in Albab on January 16.
A Syrian boy walks near rubbish next to tents at a refugee camp near the northern city of Azaz on the Syria-Turkey border, on January 8.
Syrians look for survivors amid the rubble of a building targeted by a missile in Aleppo on January 7.
A father reacts after hearing of a shelling by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo on January 3.
A patient smokes a cigarette at Dar Al-Ajaza psychiatric hospital in Aleppo on December 18, 2012. The psychiatric ward, housing around 60 patients, has lacked the means to function properly since fighting broke out there in July.
Syrians mourn a fallen rebel fighter at a rebel base in the al-Fardos area of Aleppo on December 8, 2012.
Members of Liwa (Brigade) Salahadin, a Kurdish military unit fighting alongside rebel fighters, monitor the area in the besieged district of Karmel al-Jabl in Aleppo on December 6, 2012.
A member of Liwa Salahadin aims at a regime fighter in the besieged district of Karmel al-Jabl in Aleppo on December 6, 2012.
Two young boys sit underneath a washline in a refugee camp on the border between Syria and Turkey near Azaz on December 5, 2012.
The bodies of three children, who were allegedly killed in a mortar shell attack that landed close to a bakery in Aleppo, on December 2, 2012, are laid out for identification by family members at a makeshift hospital at an undisclosed location of the city.
Smoke rises in the Hanano and Bustan al-Basha districts in Aleppo on December 1, 2012 as fighting continues through the night.
Damaged houses in Aleppo are seen after an airstrike on November 29, 2012.
A Syrian rebel mourns the death of a comrade in Maraat al-Numan on November 20, 2012.
Syrians protesters stand on Assad's portrait during an anti-regime demonstration in Aleppo on November 16, 2012.
A Syrian rebel takes cover during fighting against Syrian government forces in Aleppo on November 15, 2012.
Syrian opposition fighter Bazel Araj, 19, sleeps next to his pistol in Aleppo on November 11, 2012.
A rebel fighter fires at a Syrian government position in Aleppo on November 6, 2012.
A Syrian rebel leaps over debris left in the street while running across a "sniper alley" near the Salahudeen district in Aleppo on November 4, 2012.
Rebels hold their position in the midst of a battle on November 3, 2012 in Aleppo.
A man cries while being treated in a local hospital in a rebel-controlled area of Aleppo on October 31, 2012.
A man is treated for wounds after a government jet attacked the Karm al-Aser neighborhood in eastern Aleppo on October 31, 2012.
A Syrian rebel interrogates a handcuffed and blindfolded man suspected of being a pro-regime militiaman in Aleppo on October 26, 2012.
Smoke rises from a fuel station following a mortar attack as Syrian women walk on a rainy day in the Arqub neighborhood of Aleppo on October 25, 2012.
A Syrian rebel fires at an army position in the Karm al-Jabal district of Aleppo on October 22, 2012.
A wounded Syrian boy sits on the back of a truck carrying victims and wounded people to a hospital following an attack by regime forces in Aleppo on October 21, 2012.
A man lies on the ground after being shot by a sniper for a second time as he waits to be rescued by members of the Al-Baraa Bin Malek Battalion, part of the Free Syria Army's Al-Fatah brigade, in Aleppo on October 20, 2012.
Syrian army soldiers run for cover during clashes with rebel fighters at Karam al-Jabal neighborhood of Aleppo on October 20, 2012.
Smoke rises after a Syrian Air Force fighter jet fired missiles at the suburbs of the northern province of Idlib on October 16, 2012.
A Syrian opposition fighter stands near a post in Aleppo on October 11, 2012.
A Syrian man mourns the death of his father, who was killed during a government attack in Aleppo on October 10, 2012.
A rebel fighter is carried by his friends and laid on a gurney to be treated for gunshot wounds sustained during heavy battles with government forces in Aleppo on October 1, 2012.
Syrian rebels help a wounded comrade to an Aleppo hospital after he was injured in a Syrian army strike on September 18, 2012.
Free Syria Army fighters are reflected in a mirror they use to see a Syrian Army post only 50 meters away in Aleppo on September 16, 2012.
A Syrian man carrying grocery bags tries to dodge sniper fire as he runs through an alley near a checkpoint manned by the Free Syria Army in Aleppo on September 14, 2012.
A woman walks past a destroyed building in Aleppo on September 13, 2012.
Free Syrian Army fighters battle during street fighting against Syrian army soldiers in Aleppo on September 8, 2012.
A Syrian man wounded by shelling sits on a chair outside a closed shop in Aleppo on September 4, 2012.
A woman sits in her wheelchair next to her house, damaged by a Syrian air raid, near Homs on August 26, 2012.
Members of the Free Syrian Army clash with Syrian army soliders in Aleppo's Saif al-Dawla district on August 22, 2012.
A man mourns in front of a field hospital on August 21, 2012 in Aleppo.
Wounded civilians wait in a field hospital after an air strike on August 21, 2012 in Aleppo.
People pray during the funeral of a Free Syrian Army fighter, Amar Ali Amero, on August 21, 2012.
A man cries near the graves of his two children killed during a recent Syrian airstrike in Azaz on August 20, 2012.
A Syrian woman holds her dead baby as she screams upon seeing her husband's body being covered following an airstrike by regime forces on the town of Azaz on August 15, 2012.
A Syrian rebel runs in a street of Selehattin during an attack on the municipal building on July 23, 2012.
Syrian rebels hunt for snipers after attacking the municipality building in the city center of Selehattin on July 23, 2012.
Members of the Free Syrian Army's Mugaweer (commandos) Brigade pay their respects in a cemetery on May 12, 2012 in Qusayr.
Syrian rebels take position near Qusayr on May 10, 2012.
A Free Syrian Army member takes cover in underground caves in Sarmin on April 9, 2012.
Rebels prepare to engage government tanks that advanced into Saraquib on April 9, 2012.
Men say prayers during a ceremony in Binnish on April 9, 2012.
A young boy plays with a toy gun in Binnish on April 9, 2012.
A Free Syrian Army rebel mounts his horse in the Al-Shatouria village near the Turkish border in northwestern Syria on March 16, 2012, a year after the uprising began.
Syrian refugees walk across a field before crossing into Turkey on March 14, 2012.
A rebel takes position in Al-Qsair on January 27, 2012.
A protester in Homs throws a tear gas bomb back towards security forces, on December 27, 2011.
A man stands under a giant Syrian flag outside the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus on December 24, 2011.
A member of the Free Syrian Army looks out over a valley in the village of Ain al-Baida on December 15, 2011.
Members of the Free Syrian Army stand in an valley near the village of Ain al-Baida, close to the Turkish border, on December 15, 2011.
Displaced Syrian refugees walk through an orchard adjacent to Syria's northern border with Turkey on June 14, 2011, near Khirbet al-Jouz.
A Syrian man holds up a portrait of President Bashar al-Assad during a rally to show support for the president in Damascus on April 30, 2011.
Syrians rally to show their support for President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus on April 30, 2011.
A screen grab from YouTube shows thick smoke rising above as Syrian anti-government protesters demonstrate in Moaret Al-Noman on April 29, 2011.
A screen grab from YouTube shows Syrian anti-government protesters run for cover from tear gas fired by security forces in Damascus on April 29, 2011, during the "Day of Rage" demonstrations called by activists to put pressure on al-Assad.
A woman sits by the hospital bed of a man allegedly injured when an armed group seized rooftops in Latakia on March 27, 2011, and opened fire at passers-by, citizens and security forces personnel according to official sources.
Syrians wave their national flag and hold portraits of al-Assad during a rally to show their support for their leader in Damascus on March 29, 2011.
Syrian protesters chant slogans in support of al-Assad during a rally in Damascus on March 25, 2011.
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