The senior Democrat on the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee is pushing President Barack Obama's administration to train and arm some Syrian rebels, in addition to providing humanitarian assistance. Representative Eliot Engel will introduce a bill on Monday that would authorize Washington to provide assistance "including limited lethal equipment" to carefully vetted members of the Syrian opposition, aides and activists aware of Engel's plans said on Sunday. Washington has pledged non-lethal aid to Syria's rebels, but Obama has so far refused to give them arms, arguing that it is difficult to prevent the weapons from falling into the hands of militants who could use them against Western targets. The push by Engel, a New York Democrat, which comes days before Obama is due to visit the Middle East, could strengthen the resolve of some U.S. legislators to do more to end the bloodshed in Syria. A handful of Republican legislators, including Senators John McCain and Marco Rubio, have been pressing for various forms of U.S. military aid to the rebels. The European Union also has been debating what aid is appropriate for the Syrian opposition. Other EU governments rebuffed efforts by France and Britain on Friday to lift an arms embargo to help opponents of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, although they asked foreign ministers to discuss it again this week.
