Syria war: US launches missile strikes in
response to chemical 'attack'
The US has carried out a missile
attack against an air base in Syria in response to a suspected chemical weapons
attack on a rebel-held town.
The Pentagon said 59 Tomahawk cruise
missiles were fired at 04:40 Syrian time (01:40 GMT) from destroyers in the
eastern Mediterranean. In a televised address, President Donald Trump said the
base was the launch point for the chemical attack. He called on "all
civilised nations" to help end the conflict in Syria. Dozens of civilians,
including many children, died in the suspected nerve gas attack on
Tuesday in the town of Khan Sheikhoun in Idlib province.
Speaking from his Mar-a-Lago estate
in Florida, Mr Trump branded Syrian President Bashar al-Assad a
"dictator" who had "launched a horrible chemical weapons attack
on innocent civilians". Mr Trump said he had acted in America's
"vital national security interest" to prevent the use of chemical
weapons. "Tonight I call on all civilised nations to join us in seeking to
end this slaughter and bloodshed in Syria and also to end terrorism of all
kinds and all types," he said.
 |
| President Donald Trump speaks at Mar-a-Lago after the US fired a barrage of cruise missiles into Syria. |
The Pentagon said the Russian
military, which is supporting the Syrian government, had been informed ahead of
the US attack. In a statement it said missiles fired from Navy destroyers USS
Porter and USS Ross had targeted aircraft, aircraft shelters, storage areas,
ammunition supply bunkers, air defence systems, and radars at the Shayrat
airfield. The Pentagon added that the strike was intended "to deter the
regime from using chemical weapons again".
Analysis:
Jon Sopel, BBC North America editor
Rarely has a policy changed so far
and so quickly - and rarely has it been acted upon so swiftly. When President
Trump came to office the Syrian leader was seen as a useful ally in the fight
against so-called Islamic State. All talk of regime change stopped. But the
chemical weapons attack changed all that. Within two days, the US has reversed
its view on President Assad, identified targets and struck. What we don't know
is whether this is a one-off act of retaliation, or the start of something more
prolonged against the Assad government. Nor do we know where it leaves
relations with Syria's strong ally, Russia.
A White House spokesman said the site
targeted by the cruise missiles "was directly linked to the horrific
chemical weapons attack". "We assess with a high degree of confidence
that the chemical weapons attack earlier this week was launched from this site
by air assets under the command of the Assad regime," the official said. "We
also assess, with a similar degree of confidence, that the Assad regime used a
chemical nerve agent consistent with Sarin in these attacks." A statement
on Syrian state TV said "American aggression" had targeted a Syrian
military base with "a number of missiles" but gave no further
details.
The US action was welcomed by Syrian
opposition group the Syrian National Coalition. "We hope for more
strikes... that these are just the beginning," spokesman Ahmad Ramadan
told AFP news agency. " President Trump had earlier warned that
"something should happen" against the Syrian leadership following the
deaths in Khan Sheikhoun, but gave no details.
Also on Thursday, US Secretary of
State Rex Tillerson signalled a sudden shift in policy by the Trump
administration, saying that Bashar al-Assad should have no role in a future
Syria. Only last week the US ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, said Washington
was no longer prioritising the removal of the Syrian president. The UN Security
Council will hold further talks on Friday as it tries to agree a resolution
calling for an investigation into the deaths in Khan Sheikhoun. Russia has
already rejected a Western-backed draft. Moscow has used its veto seven times
to block UN resolutions critical of its ally Syria.
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