PARIS - Most French people are in favor of military intervention by France in Syria, a poll showed on Saturday, a sharp reversal from a survey in 2013 when the majority opposed government plans for air strikes against Syrian President Bashar Assad.

France has been providing weapons to opposition Syrian Kurdish forces but has repeatedly ruled out a military operation in Syria without a United Nations mandate. It was the first country to join the US-led coalition carrying out air strikes on Islamic State insurgents in Iraq and Syria, but ruled out taking part in strikes on targets inside Syrian borders for fear it would benefit Assad.

In a survey of 1,103 French people carried out by pollster BVA, 55 percent said they would support French action in Syria compared to 64 percent who were against in 2013. The survey showed that "92 percent of French say they are personally worried by the situation in Syria," BVA said in a statement.