WASHINGTON, 14 April 2018:
US president Donald Trump yesterday ordered precision strikes targeting Syrian president Bashar al-Assad’s chemical weapons capabilities, as explosions were heard in the Syrian capital of Damascus.
Trump said a combined operation with France and Britain was under way and that they were prepared to sustain the response until Syria stopped its use of chemical weapons. The operation by the three allies came after a poison gas attack in Syria that killed at least 60 people last week.
The US is using Tomahawk cruise missiles in its strikes in Syria, and taking aim at multiple targets in the country, a US official said without disclosing whether US aircraft were also involved in strikes.
At least six loud explosions were heard in Damascus today and smoke was seen rising over the Syrian capital, a Reuters witness said.
Syrian state TV said the army’s air defences were confronting an attack by the US, France and Britain.
A second witness said the Barzah district of Damascus had been hit in the strikes. Barzah is the location of a major Syrian scientific research centre.
– Reuters