Chemical weapons attack in Syria may have been without Assad's permission

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad did not personally order chemical weapons attack near Damascus on August 21, a German newspaper has reported.

Last month's attack has triggered calls for US military intervention in the war-torn country.

The intelligence findings were based on phone calls intercepted by a German surveillance ship operated by the BND, the German intelligence service, and deployed off the Syrian coast, Bild am Sonntag said.

The intercepted communications suggested Assad was not himself involved in last month's attack or in other instances when government forces have allegedly used chemical weapons.

According to the Guardian, Assad has earlier said that he was not behind the August attack in which hundreds died.

In an interview with CBS, he said that there has been no evidence that he used chemical weapons against his own people.

But the intercepts tended to add weight to the claims of the Obama administration and Britain and France that elements of the Assad regime was responsible for the attack, the German newspaper said.

According to the report, the German intelligence findings concerning Assad's personal role may complicate US-led efforts to persuade the international community that taking military action against Syria is justified.