Syria crisis: UN inspectors' convoy 'hit by sniper fire'

Snipers have opened fire on a convoy of UN inspectors heading to the sites of suspected chemical weapons attacks in Syria's capital, the UN has said.

The UN did not say who fired the shots, but the first car in the convoy was hit and the team returned to a checkpoint.

The Syrian government and the rebels had agreed to a ceasefire to allow the inspectors to collect evidence.

The experts say they will continue the inquiry into Wednesday's attacks in Damascus, in which hundreds died.

The US says there is little doubt Syrian forces used chemical weapons in the attack, which reportedly killed more than 300 people in a rebel-held area in eastern Damascus.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad dismissed the accusation as "an insult to common sense" and warned the US against military intervention.

"If someone is dreaming of making Syria a puppet of the West, then this will not happen," he told the Russian newspaper Izvestiya.