Alwaght-The United States has launched an aggression against Syria hitting one of the country’s military airfield near Homs under the false pretext of chemical weapons use by the Syrian army.
The strike early Friday morning in Syria targeted hangars, planes and fuel tanks at one Syrian military airfield, according to a US official. The US aggression was launched using about 60 Raytheon Co. Tomahawk cruise missiles fired from two Navy destroyers.
US ships stationed in the Mediterranean Sea reportedly launched the strike on Syria’s Shayrat airbase on Thursday night local time.
Syrian authorities say five people were killed and several wounded during the aggression. The governor of Hams province says the US strike serves terrorists but will not deter the country’s resolve to fight terrorists. Meanwhile, foreign-backed terrorists have hailed the US aggression and called for more such attacks in future.
The decision to strike in Syria marked a stark reversal for President Donald Trump, who during his presidential campaign faulted past US leaders for getting embroiled in conflicts in the West Asia region. But he said this week that deaths of children among the more that 70 killed in the April 4 attack, images of which were broadcast worldwide, crossed “beyond red lines” and changed his thinking.
Washington claims it launched the aggression in response to the alleged use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government last Tuesday at Khan Sheikhoun town in Idlib.
The illegal aggression on Syria comes hours after US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said "steps are underway" to remove Syrian President Bashar al-Assad from office. Without offering any evidence, the top US diplomat on Thursday afternoon blamed the Syrian government for the alleged chemical attack in northwestern Syria that reportedly left more than 70 people dead and dozens more injured.
Syria categorically denies using chemical weapons, blames terrorists
The Syrian government has categorically denied using chemical weapons saying it recently informed the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) that al-Nusra Front was transporting toxic substances into the war-torn country.
Western countries and media outlets have been churning out propaganda blaming the Syrian army for the death of dozens of people who allegedly killed as result of exposure to chemicals in the town of Khan Sheikhoun in a rebel-held area of northern Syria the chemical attack.
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem has dismissed any accusations that the Syrian Army deployed chemical weapons in Idlib.
It’s impossible that the army – which has been making significant gains in almost all theaters of the Syrian war – would use banned chemical weapons against its “own people” and even terrorists, the minister said. In a press conference in Damascus, al-Moallem pointed out that the lie that the Syrian army used these weapons came from countries known for always conspiring against Syria after terrorists have failed in their attacks and those countries have failed in their attempts to disrupt the political process.
Russia urges international probe
Russian president’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday that Moscow expects a full international independent investigation to be conducted on the chemical weapons incident in Syria before the UN Security Council considers any resolution concerning the incident that he described as “very tragic.”
Doing otherwise would be "simply unfair in terms of international law," Peskov said.
The UN Security Council convened on Wednesday to discuss a draft resolution proposed by the US, the UK and France, which would condemn Damascus for the reported chemical weapons attack in Khan Sheikhoun. During the meeting, the US hinted at taking its own action in Syria unless the UN Security Council moves to prevent the use of chemical weapons in the war-torn country.
Russia also introduced its own draft resolution on the investigation of the alleged chemical attack to the UN Security Council in response to the resolution prepared by the US, UK and France. It also criticized the western-backed resolution for being unbalanced and jumping to conclusions.