Britain's Armed Forces are drawing up plans for military action against Syria after the alleged toxic gas attack, which is said to have killed more than 1,300 people.
Prime Minister David Cameron will continue talks with international leaders to agree a "proportionate response" that will "deter" Bashar Assad's regime from using toxic agents on the Syrian population, Downing Street said.
Number 10 indicated that a decision could be taken before the results of a report by UN weapons inspectors into the attack, which doctors say killed hundreds, produced but insisted any response would adhere to international law.
Foreign Secretary William Hague has already said the West could act on Syria even without full UN Security Council backing.
Mr Hague declined to rule out action, such as targeted air strikes, being launched within days.
A reported build-up of military aircraft on British base RAF Akrotiri on Cyprus suggested that planning had reached a developed stage.
Any intervention in Syria would be "in accordance with international law and will be based on legal advice to the National Security Council and to the Cabinet", Mr Hague earlier stressed.
Mr Cameron returned early from a family holiday to prepare for Wednesday's National Security Council (NSC) meeting on a possible intervention in Syria.
Earlier US Secretary of State John Kerry said the alleged use of chemical weapons was "undeniable", and that the Obama administration would hold Damascus accountable for the "moral obscenity".
"Make no mistake, President Obama believes there must be accountability for those who would use the world's most heinous weapon against the world's most vulnerable people," Mr Kerry said.
The US State Department has also postponed a meeting with Russian diplomats on Syria that was scheduled for this week because of America's ongoing review into alleged use of chemical weapons.
Russia - the Damascus regime's most powerful ally - said America's decision to postpone the meeting on the crisis at The Hague was a "serious disappointment" and warned that any use of force against Syria would have "catastrophic consequences".
"We call on our American colleagues and all members of the international community to show prudence, strict observance of international law, and above all, the fundamental principles of the UN Charter," the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
Russia's Emergencies Ministry has confirmed to Sky News that it is sending a plane to Syria today to take humanitarian aid in and expects to bring around 150 Russian citizens out.
Mr Assad denies using the chemical weapons and Moscow - which supplies arms to Syria - has backed claims that video footage of victims could be opposition propaganda.
UN weapons experts are carrying out a second day of investigations into the alleged attack in Damascus, after the inspectors braved sniper fire on Monday.
Despite this, the UN team collected some "valuable" biological and environmental samples but refused to accept other samples of blood and urine that had already been taken by medical workers.
Back in the UK, MPs are due back from their summer break next Monday but Labour and a growing number of backbench MPs from all parties - including many Tories - are demanding a chance to debate the situation more quickly.
Labour's Shadow Foreign Secretary, Douglas Alexander, told Sky News that MPs must be given a vote before any British military action in Syria.
But Mr Alexander said he hopes other options besides military intervention are being being considered by the UK, US and other countries.
"I don't rule out supporting the Government [on intervention], but I think it's incumbent on the Government to make its case, to produce the evidence, to answer questions and to allow Parliament to have its say," he said.
Former Prime Minister Tony Blair, the Middle East envoy, said it was vital to "take sides" against the Assad regime and in other regional disputes.
Mr Blair, who took the decision for British troops to join the US-led action in Iraq, wrote in the Times: "I know as one of the architects of policy after 9/11 the controversy, anguish and cost of the decisions taken.
"They have to be defeated. We should defeat them, however long it takes because otherwise they will not disappear. They will grow stronger until, at a later time, there will be another crossroads and this time there will be no choice."
Former Liberal Democrat leader Sir Menzies Campbell said it was "inconceivable" to act before the UN inspectors had completed their work.
Meanwhile, it has emerged that North Korea tried to export gas masks to Syria but they were seized in Turkey along with arms and ammunitions, according to Japanese newspaper Sankei Shimbun.
After a tip-off from the US, Turkish officials in April seized 1,400 rifles and pistols and some 30,000 bullets as well as gas masks apparently for chemical protection, said the newspaper, which is known for its North Korea coverage.
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