jazeera.com. >> the white house is zillion trying to rally support from its but makes it clear it is willing to go it alone. it is a busy holiday weekend gets underway. and bad news for holiday drivers as oil prices creep up among middle uncertainty many the middle east. ♪ the u.s. is pushing to form a coalition for a possible military strike against syria, in response to last week's

chemical weapons attack. our closest ally, britain, will not be involved leaving a short supply of potential partners. here are the latest headlines. president obama says he hasn't made a decision on the timing or scope of any action that.

>> also it is not out of the question that we would hear from the president on the situation

in syria. some time during the course of the day. we have a new poll that reflects the american people's opinion, about where they want to see this go and reflect some of the problems in the obstacles that the president faces as he tries to address and consult this issue with congress. 80% of the american public according to this nbc poll say that the president needs to come to congress to get specific authorization for any perspective military action in syria. 50%, think the president should not intervene with only four pest in favor. 42% in favor. so a number of challenges. >> overwhelming number that 80% of people that want the president to get congressional approval. what are we hearing from the legislature whose heard this proofing last night. >> we have a divided congress, essentially. we have a leadership in the form of john baner the senior republican obviously republicans in the majority there. who has asked some very pointed questions about what the goal is

and to follow up to any military action. he has also said that the president needs to consult with congress, but he has not specifically asked for the president to come to congress for prior authorization before any perspective military action. however, a number of core conservatives within his own party sort of the traditional isolation's wing, say the president will be breaking the law if he doesn't do so, he will be violating the constitution. on the other side, the extreme other size of the political spectrum, are many liberal democrat whose say the president needs to do the same thing. while, at the same time, those in the leadership on the democratic side say the president has the authority, and even some senior republicans have the authority to go forward. two bottom line on that score is congress is not scheduled to return until september 9th, and the president is not expected to call congress back into session before that time. and by that time, the point can very well be moot.

>> all right, stay close, we be calling on you very shortly. now, the no vote by the british parliament, france is still committed to a firm response. jackie is live in paris, jackie, this is a long way from where the u.s. and france were with the iraq war. >> sure. back then the french prime minister appeared before the general assembly, and argued forcefully against military intervention in iraq. so much so that i understand from where you are, french fries were renamed freedom fries. but certainly not the case this time around. we have seen the traditional -- the united kingdom saying we are not getting involvinged instead of the french under the new president taking a very firm stand. president a lan said on friday, that the world could not and m

not leave the actions in damascus unpunnished. he went on to argue, that to stand by and do inning, is to send the message to any groups that it is okay to use chemical weapons. he said that would be very dangerous indeed. he recognized that france is one of the few military powers that has the capability do alongside with the united states get involved in the kind of action that is being discussed. he said france is ready, and it was just a case now of him taking the necessary decisions when the time came. >> so jackie, we know where the president stands, where france stands where do the people stand. >> well, again, we are seeing a similar situation as we are seeing in the united states. two french public seems really quite cautious about getting involved in military action against syria. in fact, an opinion poll carries out on thursday, said that 59%

of the french public would be against france intervening militarily in syria. and i have to say as wail in the political class there's also quite a bit of skepticism being expressed again. memories are still quite fresh of the intervention in iraq. two bush administration claims of weapons of mass destruction, people are quite cautious. been, another similarity with the u.s., the president of the republic of france, does not need prior approval from the french national assembly or the senate. if he chooses to engage french forces in a limited short him tear intervention overseas he has the authority to do so. okay, jackie, so much. the turkist minister says there's no doubt that the syrian president is responsible. and turkey put military on alert to guard from possible threats from syria. life from turkey. >> .

>> yes, the foreign minister convene add prez conference this afternoon, in some respects perhaps you can say he was pre-empting the findings of the u. n. investigation team. by saying as far as turkey was concerned all the evidence pointed to the government as having been responsible for these chemical weapons attacks. he sited doctor's reports, he sited turkey's own spell, conversations it was having with foreign governments and other details like the angles and the areas that the attacks could have come from. and circumstantial evidence like the fact that it landed in opposition areas feel that the people launching the chemical weapons would attack their own people, although syria historically has been a little murkier than that. yes, the turkish government making a strong stance, as it is very much in the style of the turkish government to do. >> all right, anita live from turkey, thank you. >> while, despite british prime minister pushing the use of

military force in syria, the country's par limit rejected the idea after a fierce debate on thursday. al jazeera reporting from london. >> these are the papers in britain today, and they indicate strongly the public support for what happened in the house of commons last night. we don't want your war, cameron defeated, cameron humiliated. this is the kind of language coming out today, so there's very little indication that there's going to be a change or a shift here many the united kingdom. the british people just don't have a desire, or an interest in supporting a u.s. led military interin syria. but what we are hearing from the other side of the english channel on the continent is slightly different. from paris, we are hearing that the french president gave an interview to french daily in which he made some very strong statements including french --

that france will be part of anything that happens in syria. france is ready to strike syria. and that possibly a site could happen as soon as wednesday, which is interesting because that's also the day that the french parliament will come back from their summer vacations early, to also vote on this. of course, it was a major upset for prime minister david cameron here, but the language coming out of prance is quite different. it is possible that the french unlike the iraq war, will actually support some sort of military intervention in syria. and that's just a complete opposite from ten years ago. however, having said that, the germans have now come out saying that they don't intend to -- participate in any kind of military intervention. so that would potentially mean, oddly enough, that the french and the u.s. may be the only one whose participate in a joint by lateral military operation in syria, and that would be the first time it happened since the battle of yorktown during the american revolutionary war.

>> israel is also of course keeping a close eye on the developments in washington and in syria and preparing for any repercussions from a possible u.s. strike. more from jerusalem. >> tensions certainly does remain high in israel, but there is some agreeing hope among some quarters that this country may escape these recent developments untouched. there's belief among politicians and the security establishment that it is not in serious interest to attack israel, if syria is attacked by western powers. never the less, this country here certainly preparing for the worst. largely by handing out gas masks by the thousands to its citizens, 10,000 gas masks were handed out yesterday alone. we actually went to one of those distribution centers across this country, crowds were enormous, hundreds of people waiting in line outside in the sun all day, some had to return the next day for a chance to get gas masks for them and their family. the country is also readying its

troops its missle defense system, in case a missle does enter into israeli air space. overall the feeling is of watching and waiting to see what happens in syria. >> jonathan best in jerusalem. stay with al jazeera.com for continuing coverage of syria's war, we will have much more on this coming up in just a bit in the newscast. fire crews battling the massive rim fire in yosemite national park are taking advantage of today's cooler temperatures. so far the fire is 32% contains. crews have cleared vegetation along key records to prepare for controlled burning. where travelers are still expected although in lower numbers to visit one of the nation's most popular parks. >> the situation in syria is leading to some uncertainty where gasolines prices are headed into the u.s. into the busy labor day weekend, the average price of a gallon of unledded regular is $3.61 a gallon, but gas buddies greg

tells us via skype that prices shouldn't go up much this weekend. >> right now, i think we are likely to see just a nominal increase through the labor day weekend. and that increase could be occurring rashedless of anything that happens in the middle east, simply because of the increased amount of traffic that is anticipated the number of travelers. >> aaa expects more thank thre 34 million of us will be driving more than 50-miles from home. up 4% from last year, and the most since 2008. if you text a drivener new jersey, and then you get into a scar crash, you can be held liable. a new jersey court of appeals send as text to someone that they know is drive canning be held responsible for a crash happened. it is all part of the latest crack down to stop people from using their cell phones while driving. chris christie thinks the ruling may go too far, saying it is up

to drivers to be responsibility. health insurance companies continue to weigh the price of the new healthcare reform, and not everyone is buying in it has decided not to sell insurance on individual health insurance exchange. this makes new york the 50 state that has reversed course in the same number of weeks. a deadly attack against police in egypt, the call groups are demanding the public to do in the after math. and escaping a violence of war, keeping track of children who have become refugees from syria and the activities they play to help them forget all the devastation.

same champs as english and arabic channels. disorder in a mexico court. why this judge lost his cool.

>> recapping our top stories. cooler. s are helping fire crews battle that massive fire in yo semialong key words to prepare for control burning. this fire is about 32% contained. president obama hasn't made any decision about the timing or scope of a possible military strike. that's according to a cookman that listened in on the white house proofing. the president is trying to put together a coalition for any strike on syria over last week's chemical weapons attack. russian president has been mostly silent about syria, but on thursday, russian officials said that they would sending two of their own warships to the eastern mediterranean. why russia is so determine to defend its middle east ally. >> it was the height of the cold war that the deal was struck. in 1980, sign add treaty of

cooperation and friendship, with the then syria president. it was a master stroke of soviet strategy that immediately turned the soviet union and later russia into a major player of that tinderbox of the middle east, with the soviets have been selling weapons to syria since the 1974 war. so what does russia get today? it has access to a naval maintenance and supply base that the syrian port, russian's only military base outside the former soviet union. lucrative arm sales, 10% of all weapons exported by russia go to syria, net worth, $1.5 billion a year. and lastly, unparalleled access to syria's military and security apparatus. the surprise that hush sha over the last two years has consistently voted down resolutions. but one voice has remained silent.

vladimir putin in a calculated display of indifference, was 6,000-kilometers on thursday, independenting flood defenses in the east. >> i don't think that putin has something to say, just now. to come up and to say that this attack will with wrong and a mistake and a crime, and don't do it. while everybody thinks it will. i think he will appear after the strike, and strongly condemn. at the moment i'm occupies with other things. don't follow the news. >> it is the same story now,

they will use it as an excuse to launch an attack. >> what is most important is not to be seen by the people as bending to u.s. pressure and maintaining its roll as the protector of syria. and to that end, two russian warships were deployed to the eastern mediterranean on thursday, as tensions continue to rise. a reminder to u.s. naval forces gathering in the area, that this is not solely an american pawn. so the one man vladimir putin who has enough clout with president asaad to encouraging him to go to the negotiating tables after any strikes on his country, remains fundamentally opposed to the military action that could bring about these new talks in the first place. some syrian refugees see that the potential for military action in a very different light, they hope this can mean the beginning of the end of the conflict, allowing them to return home. meanwhile, eight agencies worry

that it can drive numbers even higher. less than two weeks old, but news may be a military strike has raised hope among syrian refugees that they could be home soon. she is looking after her family, and hopes she won't be here for long. >> we would like someone else to replace president asaad, if he is the same type of person then it's no good for us. look at our situation. we would rather go back to our country. we hope an air strike will come soon, and we can go home. >> but others say that any military action will only lead to more refugees and giving the scale, eight agencies are already stretched. >> we have a plan in place, where there is a massive influx of refugees then we will have toes a other agencies and other

governments for help to cope. >> right now we are at capacity. >> who they will ask remain as question. the u.n. refugee agency has a funding crisis as do many of the other groups. however, the curdish government has promised more help but how much is unclear. for now, many syrians are hopeful that military action can mean making return home sooner rather than later. >> there's a lot of disappointment and misunderstanding here. disappointment that the west hasn't acted sooner, but my understanding because people here feel that any strike will be decisive, but it will topple president bashar asaad, and they will be able to go home. that's unlikely. what is more likely is we will see more h scenes like this, and more refugees. al jazeera. >> in egypt, one policeman was killed and three injuries in ask attack by armed men at a check point in the cairo sub push. no word yet on a motive behind the attack.

and whether it was linked to the recent protests. as thousands continue to protest, al jazeera mike has more for us from cairo. >> friday prayers completed, many prepared to take to the streets in protest. >> in recent weeks dozens of brotherhood leaders have been arrested but the anti-coup alliance, is a dominant part, has called on its followers to continue to press their demands. for the reinstatements of the democratically elected government. >> but while small protests get underway in many parts of cairo, these are the scenes in the vicinity of the number of mosques. deserted streets. whole neighborhoods quartered off by the police and the military. the apparent pension here to contain whatever protests there are within defined areas. and prevent the various demonstrations from limping together in one mass expression

of public dissent. the express warning from the mini of the interior. any action will be met with the upmost force. few will be likely to breech these barriers. cairo. >> coming up, your labor day forecast, dave. >> yeah, if crow are traveling or not, the weather will impact your weekend. ly have the forecast coming up. lap

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