US missiles target Syria air base after 'chemical attack', Damascus calls it ‘aggression’

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The US has launched 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles targeting a military air base in western Syria in a surprising shift from Washington’s policy in the war-ravaged country.

The move, which Damascus has slammed as “aggression,” was prompted by a suspected chemical attack with a toxic gas on a rebel-held Syrian town, according to US President Donald Trump.

The guided cruise missiles were launched from a US Navy destroyer in the Mediterranean Sea and were aimed at al-Shayrat military airfield in Homs in western Syria.

It was reported that aircraft and infrastructure, including the runway, were hit. AFP said four Syrian troops were killed and the base nearly destroyed, quoting the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The Syrian army said in a statement that six soldiers were killed by the US‍ missile strike.

The guided-missile destroyer USS Porter fires a Tomahawk land attack missile on April 7, 2017 from the Mediterranean Sea. /CFP Photo

The strike came within hours of US President Donald Trump hinting at possible military action against Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad, following the attack on Tuesday in the town of Khan Sheikhoun that left at least 70 dead, including at least 30 children.‍

A toxic gas, said by Turkey to be Sarin after autopsies on some of the victims there, was used during the attack, leading to residents chocking to death and foaming at the mouth.

The attack was widely blamed on the Syrian government, although no evidence has been presented yet. These allegations were categorically denied by Damascus, which in turn blamed terrorists.

The Tomahawk missiles struck the airfield from which the airplanes that carried out the attack on Khan Sheikhoun took off, US President Donald Trump said late on Thursday (local time).

The chemical attack in Idlib crossed “many, many lines” President Trump said in the wake of Tuesday’s incident, which he says forced him to change his approach to the Syria crisis and Assad – whose removal “was no longer a US priority,” according to US ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley just last week. ‍

‘American aggression,’ says Damascus

Homs Governor Talal Barazi said that the US missile strikes serve the goals of “armed terrorist groups” and ISIL.

“Syrian leadership and Syrian policy will not change," said Barazi during a phone interview with state TV. “This targeting was not the first and I don't believe it will be the last.”

He told Reuters that a rescue operation is underway.

“American aggression” had targeted a Syrian military base with “a number of missiles,” said Syrian state TV shortly after the US announced the airstrike.

"One of our air bases in the central region was exposed at dawn today to a missile strike by the United States, leading to losses," state-owned SANA News Agency reported, citing a Syrian military source.

US President Donald Trump delivers a statement on Syria from the Mar-a-Lago estate in West Palm Beach, Florida, on April 6, 2017. /CFP Photo

Assad had his chance: Trump

‍Trump commented on the airstrikes, saying it is the vital national security interest of the US to prevent the use of deadly chemical weapons.

"There can be no dispute that Syria used banned chemical weapons, violated its obligations under the chemical weapons convention and ignored the urging of the UN Security Council," Trump said, adding that the years of previous attempts at changing Assad’s behavior have failed.

The US military had given Russian forces notice in advance before the strike, Pentagon spokesman Jeff Davis said when briefing reporters on the operation.

He added that the US took extraordinary measures to avoid civilian casualties and to comply with the Law of Armed Conflict.

Russian Ambassador to the UN Vladimir Safronkov earlier on Thursday warned the US that there could be “negative consequences” if Washington takes military action against Syria.

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