'Phew' on streets of Damascus as US strikes go on hold

DAMASCUS: "Phew, that was close," was the reaction of shop-owner Nabil, sharing the relief of Damascenes as a Russian proposal appeared to put US strikes against Syria on hold at the 11th hour.

"I was at the law courts and there was a general euphoria in the air," said a prominent lawyer, declining to give his name.

"One of the employees there said: 'This is the start of the end of the war. The Russians and the Americans have agreed on chemical weapons and I think that soon they'll agree on ending the war,'" the lawyer said.

In a surprise initiative, Russia on Monday proposed Syria hand over its chemical weapons stockpile to international control, heading off punitive US strikes for the regime's alleged poison gas attacks near Damascus last month that killed hundreds of people.

The government of President Bashar al-Assad, which denies having carried out the attacks, welcomed the proposal, along with most of the international community.

"The strikes have been called off. They would have caused such terrible destruction," said tailor Abu Hussein, who like numerous people -- both pro- and anti-regime -- questioned on the streets of Damascus voiced relief.

However, a fruit and vegetables merchant in Shaalan district cautioned that it was too early to celebrate.

"Thank God, there'll be no strike. But we are always afraid in this country because you never know when death will strike," he said in a weary voice.

"We're safe for now. Our president's shown good sense. The economy would have been even more seriously damaged," was the assessment of a curtain salesman in Sabaa Bahrat Square of downtown Damascus.

But he was sure the West would "find new pretexts to attack" the Syrian government, which has faced an armed revolt since March 2011 that has cost more than 110,000 lives.

The Los Angeles Times reported on Sunday that the Pentagon was readying more intense and longer attacks on Syria than originally planned, set to last three days.

War planners aimed to unleash a heavy barrage of missile strikes to be followed swiftly by additional attacks on targets that may have been missed or remain standing after the initial launch, the Times cited officials as saying.

Two US officers told the daily that the White House has asked the defence department for an expanded list to include "many more" than the initial list of around 50 targets.

Obama strike threat is butt of Syrian jokes

A Syrian caricature shows US President Barack Obama smile and pluck the petals of a daisy, as he wonders, "Should I bomb? Or shouldn't I bomb?"

As Obama delays a strike against President Bashar al-Assad's regime thought imminent just over a week ago, Syrians on both sides of their civil war are resorting to black humour, sharing jokes and cartoons via mobile phone and the Internet.

After saying he had the authority to act on his own to strike Syria for its deadly use of chemical weapons near Damascus on August 21, Obama then referred the matter to Congress for a vote.

Now, with the prospects of a quick congressional vote diminishing and Obama cautiously welcoming a Russian initiative that would see Assad hand over his chemical arsenal, an imminent decision by the president is even less likely.

That apparent hesitation to act has given both pro- and anti-Assad Syrians a field day. Meanwhile, an Assad opponent said on the Internet he wants to "sue Barack Obama for spreading false information and for breaching the peace," 10 days after announcements were made of what seemed to be an imminent strike.

Another joke making the rounds on anti-regime Facebook pages was much darker, more than two years into a conflict that has left more than 100,000 dead. "Mr President, you are right. We should wait another three years until the Syrian people are extinct," it read.

Cartoons mocking Obama's "indecision" made the rounds, with one depicting the US president as Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse. Another joke makes fun of the US secretary of state, calling on Syrians to sign up for an imagined mobile phone service called John "Kerry, inform me at any cost" of when a strike would take place.

While the regime appeared not to have put in place any exceptional measures ahead of a possible, some commentators mocked the panic stirred in neighbouring countries.

"The Israelis have distributed gas masks, the Jordanians are on alert, the Turks are deploying anti-aircraft missiles day and night, the Lebanese are nervous, the Iraqis are lost and the Egyptians are following up on our news more than their own... "Are we sure there's a strike against Syria?" quipped one Facebook user.

Another imagined Syrians gathering, as they would to watch a football match, around "giant screens in public places, to watch the military strike live".

"An evening with shisha and drinks," the Internet surfer joked.

With some 60 percent of Americans opposed to a strike, according to a survey published on Monday, Obama has placed both the United States' and his own credibility at stake over the matter.