April 6 (UPI) — President Donald Trump on Thursday night ordered military action against President Bashar al-Assad‘s regime after a deadly chemical attack two days earlier.
The United States launched 50 Tomahawk cruise missiles from ships in the eastern Mediterranean, targeting one airfield in Syria, CBS’ David Martin reported. The United States launched about 60,000 pounds of explosives within 60 seconds.
CNN’s Barbara Starr reported the airbase where the chemical attack was carried out was targeted. That included the runway, aircraft and fuel points.
The missile strikes were the first direct assault on Assad since the civil war began six years ago.
In September 2014, the U.S. launched airstrikes under President Barack Obama against the Islamic State and Syrian government forces. After Tuesday’s chemical attack, Trump criticized Obama for not acting on his “red line” threat if chemical weapons were used.
Trump arrived Thursday afternoon at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla., for talks with China’s President Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Before dinner with the Chinese leader, Trump met with his national security team, including Defense Secretary James Mattis, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and security adviser Gen. H.R. McMaster. That’s when he decided to strike Syria, an administration official told CNN.
Earlier in the day, Trump said he was considering a military response against the Syrian government after a surprise chemical attack killed or injured hundreds of civilians near the battle-scarred city of Aleppo this week.
“There can be no dispute that Syria used banned chemical weapons … and ignored the urging of the U.N. Security Council,” he told reporters Thursday at Mar-a-Lago. “The refugee crisis continues to deepen and the region continues to destabilize.”
The bodies of victims lie in a hospital in Khan Sheikhun, Syria, a rebel-held town in Idlib province about 50 miles southwest of Aleppo, following a suspected chemical attack on Tuesday. On Thursday, President Donad Trump said he is considering a military response to the bombing, which U.S. officials believe was ordered by Syrian President Bashar al Assad. Photo by Omar Haj Kadour/ UPI
Earlier, aboard Air Force One, the president expressed disdain for the attack, which American officials believe was orchestrated by Assad’s regime against the people of Khan Sheikhoun, in Idlib province.
“What Assad did is terrible,” Trump said aboard the presidential jet after a reporter asked whether Assad should be allowed to stay in power. “What happened in Syria is one of the truly egregious crimes. It shouldn’t have happened. It shouldn’t be allowed to happen.
“I think what happened in Syria is a disgrace to humanity. [Assad is] there, and I guess he’s running things, so something should happen.”
“We agree with the president that Assad has crossed a line with his latest use of chemical weapons,” Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said in a joint statement Thursday. “The message from the United States must be that this will not stand. We must show that no foreign power can or will protect Assad now. He must pay a punitive cost for this horrific attack.”
“This is a test of the new administration, but also for our entire country,” the statement continued. “Assad is trying to see what he can get away with. … There is plenty that Democrats and Republicans in Washington disagree on. But in this instance, we must show the world that we are still capable of putting aside our differences and doing the right thing.”
The United States has a big military presence in the region. The USS George H.W. Bus aircraft carrier is deployed to the Middle East, and includes guided-missile destroyers and cruisers that can also launch Tomahawk cruise missiles.
Authorities continue to assess the Tuesday attack, which officials estimate killed more than 70 people and injured another 400. The strike further solidified the United States’ fierce opposition to leaving Assad in power — a prospect Obama’s government repeatedly tried to remove, through various means.
Syria’s civil war, now in its seventh year, has resulted in the deaths of more than a half-million people and has been a major source of tension between Washington and Damascus — and the Russian government, which remains a staunch ally of Assad’s and has provided his regime with substantial military support.
Wednesday, during a visit to the White House by Jordanian King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein, Trump said he carries the responsibility of U.S. involvement in Syria. Tuesday, he condemned the attack and said it “cannot be ignored by the civilized world.”
Trump has aimed some of the blame at Obama, for purportedly failing to intervene in Syria. The president was subsequently criticized for that accusation in light of the fact that he has previously shunned virtually any U.S. involvement in Syria.
“Forget Syria and make America great again!” he said in a September 2013 tweet.
Diplomatic relations between the United States and Russia are at historically low levels. Putin repeatedly chafed with Obama’s administration over various issues — to the point, intelligence officials say, that he may have even ordered Kremlin operatives to tinker with the American election to keep Democrat and Obama apostle Hillary Clinton out of the White House.
Tuesday was not the first time Assad has been accused of waging chemical warfare on his civilians. Many analysts believe it’s been a hallmark of his bloody six-year crusade to fight off rebels and keep power — similar to what former dictator Saddam Hussein did in Iraq for decades.
Russia, Assad’s biggest ally, has provided military air support for Syria’s fight against Islamic State terrorists and revolutionary insurgents for more than a year. A U.S.-led coalition supporting the rebels has led the charge to oust Assad and has brokered multiple unsuccessful cease-fire agreements for that purpose. American military troops, however, have been scarce inside Syria’s borders — as Pentagon strategists have instead chosen to maintain strictly a training and advisory role for the rebel alliance.
