The wicked have drawn out the sword, and have bent their bow; to cast down the poor and needy, to slay such as are upright in the way; Their sword shall enter into their own heart, and their bows shall be broken. (Psalms 37:14-15)

The dominantly Christian town of Maaloula, Syria has been taken over by rebel forces according to Breitbart.com and the Daily Mail. The rebels have reportedly stormed the Christian center in the town and have given the locals the choice of converting to Islam or be killed.

One resident told the Daily Mail, the rebels shouted “Allahu Akhbar” as they moved through the village, and proceeded to assault Christian homes and churches.

“They shot and killed people,” he said. “I heard gunshots and then I saw three bodies lying in the middle of a street in the old quarters of the village. Where is President Obama to see what has befallen us?” Another witness stated, “I saw the militants grabbing five villagers and threatening them and saying, “Either you convert to Islam, or you will be beheaded.”

There have been conflicting reports as to whether the Assad regime or the rebels and currently in control of the city. According to Breitbart, the village is located just 25 miles from Damascus, and sites within the village are dedicated as United Nations world heritage sites. Residents still speak Aramaic, the language of Jesus. The rebels who took over the city are associated with the al Nusra Front, an al Qaeda-associated Islamist group.

As the atrocities mount on both sides of the Syrian civil war, American President Barack Obama has seemingly begun to backtrack on his previously stated “red lines” for the war-torn country. Obama, in a media blitz effort to garner support from the American people, gave six network interviews, in which he discussed the possibility of not gaining the Congressional support he seeks for intervention in Syria as well as his belief that a diplomatic process may be a better alternative, The Times of Israel reported.

Obama’s reversal comes as the support he desires from Congress seems far more difficult than he previously thought. Following Obama’s suggestion that diplmoacy may be the correct direction for the US, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid cited “international discussions” in unexpectedly postponing a test vote originally set for Wednesday on Obama’s call for legislation backing a military strike.

According to the Times, Obama said statements suggesting that Syria might agree to surrender control of its chemical weapons stockpile were a potentially positive development. At the same time, he said they were yet another reason for lawmakers to give him the backing he is seeking.

“If we don’t maintain and move forward with a credible threat of military pressure, I do not think we will actually get the kind of agreement I would like to see,” he said on CNN.

Obama appeared dismissive when asked about a threat issued by Assad in an interview that aired Monday.

Assad, speaking to Charlie Rose in Damascus, said Syria was “not the only player in the region” and, if a US strike occurs, the US and allies in return “should expect everything. Not necessarily from the government.”

Obama told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer that Syria didn’t have the capability to threaten the US, but acknowledged that other regional players, including Iran and Hezbollah, could engage in “asymmetrical strikes” against the US. He said the US was already dealing regularly with such threats.

In a separate interview with NBC, the president took the step — unusual for any politician — of conceding he may lose his campaign in Congress for legislation authorizing a military strike. “I wouldn’t say I’m confident” of the outcome, he said.

“I think it’s fair to say that I haven’t decided” on a next step if Congress turns its back, the president told NBC, part of a furious lobbying campaign aimed at winning support from dubious lawmakers as well as a war-weary public.

US Secretary of State John Kerry said in a news conference in London on Sunday that Assad could resolve the crisis surrounding a chemical weapons attack simply by turning over “every single bit” of his weapons stock to the international community within a week, according to The Times of Israel.

An AP survey indicated the issue was hardly hopeless for the president, particularly in the Senate where Democrats maintain a majority, and perhaps also in the Republican-controlled House.

The survey showed 23 Senate votes in favor of military authorization and 10 more leaning that way. Opponents totaled 20, with another 14 leaning in the same direction, with the remaining 33 senators undecided or publicly uncommitted. That created at least the possibility of the 60-vote majority that will be necessary to advance the bill.

In the House, there were fewer than a dozen declared in support and 150 opposed or leaning that way. But 201 lawmakers had yet to take a public position, more than enough to swing the outcome either way.

An AP poll on public opinion was far more daunting however. According to the poll, 61 percent of those surveyed want Congress to vote against authorization of US military strikes in Syria and 26 percent want lawmakers to support such an action, with the remainder undecided.