The destruction of Syria's chemical weapons stockpile is well under way, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, has won a Nobel Peace Prize.

A tweet that appeared to suggest Israel had attacked Syria sent US oil prices soaring - until traders realised the post referred to the 40th anniversary of a war.

Former APNZ reporter Kate Shuttleworth spoke to Syrian evacuees in Jordan about their daily dilemma.

The 11-year-old's singed hair is matted with dirt and blood.

Syria's foreign minister has claimed that his government is fighting a war against al-Qaeda-linked militants who eat human hearts and dismember people while they are still alive, then send their limbs to family members.

Inspectors charged with the enormous task of overseeing the destruction of Syria's deadly chemical weapons stockpiles have kicked off their mission, racing to meet tight deadlines against the backdrop of civil war.

The five permanent members of the often-divided UN Security Council have reached agreement on a resolution to eliminate Syria's chemical weapons arsenal.

The UN Security Council, long paralysed by deep divisions over how to deal with the Syrian conflict, is about two days away from agreeing on a resolution to require Damascus to dismantle its chemical weapons stockpiles.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said yesterday that he could not be sure attempts to persuade Syria to surrender its chemical weapons would succeed.

The trajectory of the rockets that delivered the nerve agent sarin in last month's deadly attack is among the key evidence linking elite Syrian troops based in the mountains overlooking Damascus to the strike that killed hundreds of people.

The poison gas attacks in Damascus were launched from a military base controlled by Bashar al-Assad's forces.

The United Nations denounced a war crime in Syria when a chilling investigation found that sarin nerve gas was used against civilians including children.

A high-ranking Syrian official called the US-Russian agreement on securing Syria's chemical weapons a "victory" for President Bashar Assad's regime, but the US has warned "the threat of force is real" if Damascus fails to carry out the plan.

In a televised address, French President Francois Hollande says he hasn't ruled out the "military option" against Syria.

Two of the strongest advocates of the need to "teach Bashar al-Assad a lesson" appear to be having difficulty in ensuring their actions have many supporters.

Key international players were moving on two diplomatic fronts on the Syrian crisis at the United Nations and Geneva.

A look at how the past days' parallel tracks - pushing for approval of a military attack while pausing to give diplomacy a chance - unfolded.

When someone pulls a rabbit out of a hat, it's natural to be suspicious. Magicians are professionals in deceit - and so are diplomats. But sometimes the rabbit is real.

America's threat of military action against Syria's regime receded into the distance yesterday as Washington and its allies decided to test a Russian proposal.

Editorial: The Russian plan for Syria's chemical weapons might not amount to punishment, but it would reinforce the international abhorrence of such weapons.

New Zealand is now firmly blaming the Syrian Government for the chemical weapons attack against civilians.

US President Barack Obama has said that recent diplomatic steps offer "the potential to remove the threat of chemical weapons" inside Syria without the use of force.

Syria says it's ready to state where its chemical weapons are and to halt their production, but the US says it'll have to do more than sign up to a treaty.

Battling stiff resistance in Congress, US President Barack Obama has conceded he might lose his fight for congressional support of a military strike against Syria.

Prime Minister John Key says a UN-backed suggestion to destroy all of Syria's chemical weapons as a way of diverting an increasingly violent situation is an "interesting proposal".