Night [4]
Increase in chatter.
Auth B19-2.
Sparrow Red.
Prevent at all costs.
Good.
Castle_Online.
Q
Increase in chatter.
Auth B19-2.
Sparrow Red.
Prevent at all costs.
Good.
Castle_Online.
Q
The US launched military strikes alongside UK and French forces on Saturday morning aimed at damaging the Syrian regime’s chemical weapons facilities in the wake of last weekend’s gas attack on the Damascus suburb of Douma. Some 105 missiles were fired in total, the Pentagon said.
Moments after Donald Trump finished his address on Friday night, reports emerged of explosions in Damascus at about 2am BST (9pm ET). A Pentagon briefing later confirmed three sites were hit: two in Damascus and one in Homs. The sites were all regarded as being linked to the storage, or testing, of chemical weapons. Syrian air defences responded to the strikes but the US said it had suffered no losses in the initial airstrikes
https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2018/apr/14/syria-donald-trump-announcement-chemical-attack-live
http://abcnews.go.com/International/trump-orders-strike-syria-response-chemical-attack/story?id=54459378
Trump orders strike on Syria in response to chemical attack
Addressing the nation Friday evening, Trump said the strike was a joint operation with France and the United Kingdom.
"A short time ago, I ordered the United States Armed Forces to launch precision strikes on targets associated with the chemical weapons capabilities of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad," Trump said.
://www.businessinsider.com/us-fired-tomahawk-missiles-syria-2018-4
https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2018/apr/14/syria-donald-trump-announcement-chemical-attack-live
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-04-14/trump-to-make-statement-on-syria-as-expectations-of-strike-grow
- Pentagon says Assad chemical facilities significantly degraded
The Pentagon said missile strikes on Syria have hampered Bashar al-Assad’s ability to use chemical weapons again, without encountering serious resistance from the Syrian military or its Russian allies.
President Donald Trump summed up that achievement in two words: “Mission accomplished.”
Trump said that the "massacre" last weekend in Syria "was a significant escalation in a pattern of chemical weapons use by that very terrible regime."
"The evil and the despicable attack left mothers and fathers, infants and children thrashing in pain and gasping for air. These are not the actions of a man," Trump said, referring to Assad. "They are crimes of a monster instead."
In a later briefing, Defense Secretary James Mattis said the strike demonstrates the international resolve to prevent the use of chemical weapons, saying he is "confident the Syrian regime conducted a chemical attack on innocent people in the last week."
"Clearly the Assad regime did not get the message last year," Mattis said, adding that this time the U.S. struck harder.
"We have gone to great lengths to avoid civilian and foreign casualties," he said. "... I believe that we sent a very strong message."
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Joseph Dunford said the strike specifically hit three targets associated with the production and storage of chemical weapons: a scientific research center; a storage center for sarin and its precursor components; and a chemical weapons storage facility and command post.
"Important infrastructure was destroyed," said Dunford.
There were no reports of American losses, Mattis said.
Russia was not notified before launching airstrikes against Syria, Dunford said, adding no additional strikes are planned.
Social posts out of Syria showed flames lighting up the dark skies. Explosions could be heard as well.
Syrian state media confirmed the scientific research center in Barzeh, north of Damascus, was targeted in the attack, adding that a number of rockets targeting warehouses belonging to the Syrian army in Homs were allegedly intercepted.
The Russian Defense Ministry held a briefing Saturday in which they said 71 of the 103 missiles that were fired were intercepted. The Syrian government offered similar claims, though neither provided evidence to back up the claims. Russia also said no one was killed by any of the strikes.
Syrian state media said it was a "cowardly terrorist attack," only done for “America to save face.”
In his remarks, Trump also delivered a message to Iran and Russia.
"To Iran and to Russia I ask, what kind of a nation wants to be associated with the mass murder of innocent men, women and children? The nations of the world can be judged by the friends they keep. No nation can succeed in the long run by promoting rogue states, brutal tyrants, and murderous dictators," Trump said.
"In 2013, [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin and his government promised the world that they would guarantee the elimination of Syria's chemical weapons," he continued. "Assad's recent attack and today's response are the direct result of Russia's failure to keep that promise. Russia must decide if it will continue down this dark path or if it will join with civilized nations as a force for stability and peace. Hopefully, someday we'll get along with Russia and maybe even Iran. But maybe not."
Putin responded to the attack against Syria on Saturday saying "an act of aggression against a sovereign state that is at the forefront of the fight against terrorism has been committed."
"Very quickly we need to put options on the table to see if Russia is willing to engage in a multilateral process," a source within the French presidency said Saturday.
Trump added that the U.S. "does not seek an indefinite presence in Syria."
"We look forward to the day when we can bring our warriors home," he said. "... We cannot purge the world of evil or act everywhere there is tyranny. No amount of American blood or treasure can produce lasting peace and security in the Middle East.
"... We pray that God will bring comfort to those suffering in Syria," Trump concluded. "We pray that God will guide the whole region toward a future of dignity and of peace. And we pray that God will continue to watch over and bless the United States of America."
The strike came as Trump has alluded to military action in Syria all week, even tweeting on Wednesday that Russia should be "ready" because "nice and new and 'smart'" missiles "will be coming." But Thursday, he seemed to walk back that statement, tweeting military action "could be very soon or not so soon at all."
Trump has reportedly been moved by images of the suspected chemical weapons attack on the Syrian city of Douma outside of Damascus all week, calling it "atrocious."
"We cannot allow atrocities like that. Cannot allow it," Trump told reporters during a Cabinet meeting on Monday, adding he expected to make a decision on a response in the next 24 to 48 hours.
Images showed victims of the attack foaming at the mouth.
Defense Secretary James Mattis and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Joseph Dunford met with the president at the White House on Wednesday to discuss the situation in Syria. There were additional National Security Council meetings on Thursday and Friday.
Trump also spoke to French President Emmanuel Macron and U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May several times by phone this week. The administration said previously any response Assad's alleged chemical weapons use would be done in consultation with allies.
In a statement Friday night, May called last weekend's chemical attack "pure horror."
"The Syrian regime has a history of using chemical weapons against its own people in the most cruel and abhorrent way," May said. "And a significant body of information including intelligence indicates the Syrian Regime is responsible for this latest attack."
May held a press conference with reporters early Saturday morning for about 40 minutes, taking dozens of questions from reporters.
"There is no graver decision for a prime minister than to commit our forces to combat. And this is the first time that I've had to do so," May said.
May said the attack was designed specifically to damage chemical weapons facilities and "was not about interfering in a civil war" or "regime change." She said the best option remains a "political solution."
AIR STRIKE IN SYRIA
Perhaps in preparation for a strike, Syria repositioned some of its aircraft from bases earlier in the week, a U.S. official told ABC News. A second official said the Syrian military had gone into an increased defensive posture.
Macron, meanwhile, said the response is "limited to the Syrian regime's capabilities to produce and use chemical weapons."
"We cannot tolerate the normalization of the use of chemical weapons, which is a direct threat to the security of the Syrian people and our collective security," he said.
On Wednesday, the World Health Organization said that during the shelling of Douma, "an estimated 500 patients presented to health facilities exhibiting signs and symptoms consistent with exposure to toxic chemicals."
"More than 70 people sheltering in basements have reportedly died, with 43 of those deaths related to symptoms consistent with exposure to highly toxic chemicals," the organization said. "Two health facilities were also reportedly affected by these attacks."
On Friday, U.S. Ambassador the United Nations Nikki Haley said analysis done by the U.S., U.K. and France proved the chemical attack. State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert also confirmed the use of chemical weapons, but said the U.S. was still “looking into” the “exact kind or the mix” of agent used.
Despite the air strikes Friday, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons said it will continue its fact-finding mission in Syria to "establish facts around the allegations of chemical weapons use in Douma."
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/04/14/syria-strike-haley-united-nations-trump-523092
We obliterated the major research facility that it used to assemble weapons of mass murder," U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said at a meeting of the U.N. Security Council. | Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo
U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said President Donald Trump told her Saturday the U.S. remains "locked and loaded" if Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad uses chemical weapons to attack his own people again.
"Last night, we obliterated the major research facility that it used to assemble weapons of mass murder," Haley said at U.N. Security Council meeting called by Russia, which has condemned the Friday night strike on Syria's chemical weapon capabilities by the U.S., France and Britain. "I spoke to the president this morning and he said if the Syrian regime uses this poisonous gas again, the United States is locked and loaded."
Addressing reports that Russia has stepped up efforts to spread misinformation after the strike, Haley stated that "pictures of dead children were not fake news" and said there is evidence the Syrian regime was behind the most recent attack. Haley said that past Russian actions through the Security Council had thwarted attempts to rein in the Assad's regime's use of chemical weapons, giving the "green light" to the Syrian leader."When our our president draws a red line, our president enforces the red line," Haley added.
"Chemical weapons are a threat to us all," Haley said. "They are unique threat, a type of weapon so evil that the international community agreed they must be banned. We cannot stand by and let Russia trash every international norm that we stand for."
Pentagon officials said Saturday that the strike dealt a crippling blow to Syria's future capabilities for using chemical weapons. Joint Staff Lt. Gen. Kenneth McKenzie told reporters the U.S-led operation would “set the Syrian chemical weapons program back by years."
Trump congratulated U.S. and allied forces for the "perfectly executed strike," adding that it was "Mission Accomplished!"
Expand your thinking.
The ‘date’ vs ‘actual’.
Iran next.
Trust the plan!
April SHOWERS.
[SHOWERS].
Do you believe in coincidences?
Q
The ‘date’ vs ‘actual’.
Iran next.
Trust the plan!
April SHOWERS.
[SHOWERS].
Do you believe in coincidences?
Q
#GREATAWAKENING
Expand your thinking.
The ‘date’ vs ‘actual’.
Iran next.
Trust the plan!
April SHOWERS.
[SHOWERS].
Do you believe in coincidences?
Q
Expand your thinking.
The ‘date’ vs ‘actual’.
Iran next.
Trust the plan!
April SHOWERS.
[SHOWERS].
Do you believe in coincidences?
Q
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