The UN says its weapons inspectors have been forced to suspend their investigation of alleged chemical weapons use in Syria.
A UN spokesman has said the inspection has been suspended after the team were "deliberately shot at, multiple times" by snipers.
Their vehicle is now out of service, but the team are due to reattempt their visit when a new vehicle has been found.
Syria's state news agency has attributed the shooting to the 'terrorist' rebels waging a two-year civil war against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.
The development is likely to further infuriate western powers as they demand an international response to the alleged use of chemical weapons.
The UK was already reportedly preparing navy vessels for joint actions with the US, and Britain's foreign secretary William Hague was demanding action.
France's foreign minister Laurent Fabius had also claimed there was adequate evidence that Assad was responsible, and that action was needed.
However before the attack, the UN was sounding a more cautious tone.
Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon had stressed the need for a full inspection of the area before committing to firtjer action.
President al-Assad has meanwhile denied responsibility for any chemical weapons use, saying it was an "insult to common sense" to claim he had used gas weapons against his own people.
He also told a Russian newspaper that the United States would face a Vietnam-style failure if it launched a military intervention.
