Obama: Unilateral Action Against Syria a 'Mistake' President Barack Obama says that unilateral military action by the United States against the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad would be a mistake. He says the situation in Syria is more complicated than it was in Libya. Obama has resisted calls to get drawn into the turmoil in Syria to stop Assad's bloody crackdown on protesters. More than 7,500 people have been killed there. Obama said at a news conference Tuesday that the international community has not been able to muster a campaign against Syria like the one in Libya that ousted Moammar Gadhafi last year. Russia has blocked a U.N. Security Council resolution against Assad's regime. Obama's strategy has been to use sanctions and international diplomatic isolation to pressure Assad into handing over power.