“It’s very unlikely that Assad, winning the war, would use chemical weapons against civilians”, said Marcos Perez, of Bonita.
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But Syria’s allies, Iran and Russian Federation, have condemned the attack, and are arming troops for a military retaliation.
The White House said Friday the attack on a Syrian air base was “very decisive, justified and proportional”.
“They understand that the US acted appropriately and in most cases there is widespread praise from around the globe for the president’s actions”, he said.
“Like Donald Trump says; “This is huge”.
Trump and his advisors, at the club for the summit with Chinese leader Xi Jingping, are crammed into a space the size of a small guest room or a large storage closet, with a “Quiet Area” sign taped to the door. “It is clear that President Trump made that statement to the world”, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told reporters. “We describe that attack as a flagrant violation of global law and an act of aggression”.
He said Russian Federation firmly stands by the Syrian government, calling it the main force against terrorism and saying it deserves the presumption of innocence in the chemical weapons attack. “Tonight’s military strikes in Syria are a signal to the world that the days of blank threats are long gone and under this administration credibility will be restored”. More jarringly, Russian Federation said it’s suspending an agreement that allows the USA and Russian Federation to coordinate their air operations in Syria so as to prevent accidental midair collisions between their aircraft.
The Pentagon pointed to Syria’s 2013 use of chemical weapons as proof the Russians failed to rein in the Syrian regime. “At the time they reported that the Syrians had turned in all of their chemical weapons”. The drone returned late in the day as citizens were going to a nearby hospital for treatment. Shortly afterward, officials say the hospital was bombed.
U.S. officials said measures had been put in place to avoid hitting sarin gas they said was stored at the airfield.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said she wants the House to return from its scheduled two-week legislative break to begin immediate debate on a new AUMF agreement.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (SHEEN-zoh AH-bay) says his government supports “the resolve of the USA government of never tolerating the proliferation and use of chemical weapons”. It’s a perception that gained added currency as various US investigations gained steam into possible collusion on election meddling between Trump’s presidential campaign and Russian intelligence.
Moscow announced that it will strengthen Syria’s air defense systems and, according to the New York Times, is “planning to send a frigate into the Mediterranean Sea to visit the logistics base at the Syrian port of Tartus”.
The United Nations Security Council was to meet yesterday to discuss the USA cruise missile strikes, diplomats said.
Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said that while he considers Assad a war criminal, he’s “deeply concerned the strike in Syria could lead the USA back into the quagmire of long-term military engagement in the Middle East”. This spells the end not just of this particular document, whose scope has been expanded since Trump came to power, but also of the growing cooperation, that has developed between USA and Russian forces in Syria in recent months. “Our prior interventions in this region have done nothing to make us safer, and Syria will be no different”. “To all of my colleagues who think that this president can not act without your approval, you don’t understand the way the constitution works”, he said.
Spicer added that there was no political contact with Russia before the strikes, but Russian military was alerted.
The strike was carried out in retaliation for chemical-weapons attacks on Tuesday – believed to have been ordered by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad – which killed more than 80 civilians, including dozens of children.
The Free Syrian Army and other rebel factions called for more strikes to “prevent the regime from using its airports and internationally-banned weapons against Syrians”.
“It’s a clear message that the USA will not allow dictators to use chemical weapons”, said Eyal Zisser, the head of the Middle Eastern and African History department at Tel Aviv University.
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Stoltenberg said that “any use of chemical weapons is unacceptable, can not go unanswered, and those responsible must be held accountable”.
