Apr 14, 2018 12:09 PM IST | Source: Moneycontrol.com
Syria crisis LIVE: Over 100 missiles fired at Syria, says Russia; US, allies responsible for fallout, says Iran
US President Donald Trump and European allies launched precision strikes on Syrian targets associated with chemical weapons in the wake of gas attack on Douma
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highlights
Syrians gather in capital in defiance after air strikes
US, allies responsible for regional fallout of Syria strikes: Iran
Syria 'most serious threat' to international peace, security: UN chief
Russia likely to call UN meeting over Syria attack: Russian lawmaker
Russian lawmaker: US strikes on Syria violate international law
Syrian TV says 3 civilians wounded in airstrikes by US, UK, France
Pro-Assad official says targeted bases were evacuated on Russian warning
Syria attacked just as it had chance for peace: Russian foreign ministry
Red line set by France in 2017 has been crossed: French president Macron
Russian Ambassador warns US of consequences
Strikes Violate International Law: Syria
Struck Syria, But Message to Anyone Using Chemical Weapons: British PM May
Storm Shadow Missiles Used To Attack: Britain
NATO chief 'supports' Syria strikes
The head of NATO expressed his support for Western strikes in Syria today after bombings targeting Bashar al-Assad's regime in retaliation for a suspected chemical attack. "I support the actions taken by the United States, the United Kingdom and France... This will reduce the regime's ability to further attack the people of Syria with chemical weapons," Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in a statement. "NATO considers the use of chemical weapons as a threat to international peace and security, and believes that it is essential to protect the Chemical Weapons Convention," the statement added. "This calls for a collective and effective response by the international community."
Syrians gather in capital in defiance after air strikes
Hundreds of Syrians gathered at landmark squares in the Syrian capital on Saturday, honking their car horns, flashing victory signs and waving Syrian flags in scenes of defiance that followed unprecedented joint air strikes by the United States, France and Britain.
"Good souls will not be humiliated," Syria's presidency tweeted after the air strikes began.
Immediately after the attack, hundreds of residents began gathering in the landmark Omayyad square of the Syrian capital. Many waved Syrian, Russian and Iranian flags. Some clapped their hands and danced, other drove in convoys, honking their horns in defiance. "We are your men, Bashar," they shouted.
Syrian state TV broadcast live from the square where a large crowd of civilians mixed with men in uniforms, including an actor, lawmakers and other figures. "Good morning steadfastness," one broadcaster said.
US, allies responsible for fallout of Syria strikes: Iran
Iran's Foreign Ministry on Saturday condemned the US-led attacks on Syria and said Washington and its allies would bear responsibility for the consequences in the region and beyond, state media said.
"Undoubtedly, the United States and its allies, which took military action against Syria despite the absence of any proven evidence ... will assume the responsibility for the regional and trans-regional consequences of this adventurism," Iran's Foreign Ministry said in a statement carried by state media. "Iran is opposed to the use of chemical weapons on the basis of religious, legal and ethical standards, while at the same time it ... strongly condemns (using this) as an excuse to commit aggression against a sovereign state," it added.
Iran has been Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's most supportive ally against insurgents throughout the conflict. Iran-backed militias first helped his army stem rebel advances and, following Russia’s entry into the war in 2015, turn the tide decisively in Assad’s favour.
Analyst Hossein Sheikholeslam, a former Iranian ambassador to Damascus, told state television the attacks would help unite Syrians behind the government. "These attacks will stabilise the Syrian government... and unite the different tribes in Syria as Syrians become aware of their honour and come to the defence of the independence, territorial integrity and the government of their country," Sheikholeslam said.
Over 100 missiles fired at Syria, 'significant number' intercepted, says the Russian defence ministry
Syria 'most serious threat' to international peace, security: UN chief
Syria represents the "most serious threat" to international peace and security, UN chief Antonio Guterres said today, urging all the member states to show restraint and avoid any acts that could escalate the situation and worsen suffering of the Syrian people. "I have been closely following the reports of air strikes in Syria conducted by the US, France and the UK. There's an obligation, particularly when dealing with matters of peace and security, to act consistently with the Charter of the United Nations and with international law in general. The UN Charter is very clear on these issues," he said.
"I have repeatedly expressed my deep disappointment that the Security Council failed to agree on a dedicated mechanism for effective accountability for the use of chemical weapons in Syria. I urge the Security Council to assume its responsibilities and fill this gap," he said. Guterres said he will continue to engage with member states to help achieve this objective.
Russia likely to call UN meeting over Syria attack: Russian lawmaker
Russian lawmaker Vladimir Dzhabarov said on Saturday that Russia was likely to call for a meeting of the United Nations security council to discuss US, British and French air strikes on Syria, RIA news agency cited him as saying. "The situation is being analysed right now. Russia will demand a meeting of the UN security council, I am sure," Dzhabarov, who is the deputy head of Russia's foreign affairs committee, was quoted by RIA as saying.
Russian, Syrian and Iranian flags were seen during protests against the air strikes in Damascus. Image: Reuters
Syrians wave Russian and Syrian flags during a protest against US-led air strikes in Damascus. Image: Reuters
US-led air strikes have enforced Syria red line: Israeli official
The US-led air strikes on Syria have enforced a red line set for President Bashar al-Assad on the use of chemical weapons, an Israeli official said on Saturday.
"Last year, President Trump made clear that the use of chemical weapons crosses a red line. Tonight, under American leadership, the United States, France and the United Kingdom enforced that line," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
"Syria continues to engage in and provide a base for murderous actions, including those of Iran, that put its territory, its forces and its leadership at risk," the official said.
Russian lawmaker: US strikes on Syria violate international law
US, British and French airstrikes on Syria are a violation of international law and are likely meant to prevent investigators of the global chemical weapons watchdog from doing their work, a senior Russian lawmaker was quoted by Interfax as saying on Saturday.
The chairman of the international affairs committee of Russia's upper house of parliament, Konstantin Kosachev, described the air strikes as a groundless attack on a sovereign government, Interfax said. "It's also highly likely an attempt to create complications for the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons mission which was just starting its work in Syria's Douma, or an attempt to completely derail it," Kosachev was quoted as saying.
None of the airstrikes hit zones where Russian air defence systems protect the Russian bases of Tartus and Hmeimim, Russian news agencies cited the Ministry of Defence as saying.
Smoke rises after airstrikes targeting different parts of the Syrian capital Damascus. Image: AP
Syrian TV says 3 civilians wounded in airstrikes by US, UK, France
Syrian state-run TV says three civilians have been wounded in the US-led missile attack on a military base in Homs.
It says the attack was aborted by derailing the incoming missile but adds nonetheless that three people were wounded.
It says another attack with "a number of missiles" targeting a scientific research centre destroyed a building and caused other material damage but no human losses. The network says the building in the research centre included an educational centre and labs.
Planes prepare to take off as part of the joint airstrike operation, in this still image from video footage obtained on April 14 from social media. Image: Reuters
Pro-Assad official says targeted bases were evacuated on Russian warning
The Syrian government and its allies have absorbed a US-led attack on Saturday and the targeted sites were evacuated days ago thanks to a warning from Russia, a senior official in a regional alliance that backs Damascus said.
"We have absorbed the strike", the official told Reuters.
"We had an early warning of the strike from the Russians ... and all military bases were evacuated a few days ago," the official said. Around 30 missiles were fired in the attack, and a third of them were shot down, the official said.
"We are carrying out an assessment of the material damages," the official added.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has been backed in the seven-year-long Syrian war by Russia, Iran, and Iran-backed Shia groups from across the region, including Lebanon's Hezbollah.
Syria attacked just as it had chance for peace: Russian foreign ministry
Syria has been attacked just as it had a chance for peace, Russia's foreign ministry said on Saturday, hours after US, British and French forces pounded Damascus with air strikes in response to a suspected poison gas attack last week.
"First the 'Arab spring' tested the Syrian people, then Islamic State, now smart American rockets. The capital of a sovereign government, trying for years to survive under terrorist aggression, has been attacked," foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova wrote on Facebook.
"You have to be quite abnormal to attack Syria’s capital just at the moment when it had a chance for a peaceful future," she wrote.
According to a CNN International report, a US official said the strikes targeted three sites:
A scientific research center in Damascus
A chemical weapons storage facility located west of Homs, Syria
A chemical weapons equipment storage facility and command post near second target
Red line set by France in 2017 has been crossed: French president Macron
French President Emmanuel Macron said France had joined the United States and Britain in an ongoing operation of strikes to target "the capacities of the Syrian regime to produce and use chemical weapons".
"We cannot tolerate the normalization of the use of chemical weapons," he said in a statement issued shortly after huge explosions were heard in Syria's capital early Saturday followed by the sound of airplanes overhead.
For Macron, "the facts and the responsibility of the Syrian regime are not in doubt", concerning the "deaths of dozens of men, women and children" in what he said was a chemical weapons attack on April 7 in Douma.
"The red line set by France in May 2017 has been crossed," he said. "I have ordered the French army to intervene tonight as part of an international operation in coalition with the US and Britain directed against the secret chemical arsenal of the Syrian regime," he said.
Anti-aircraft fire is seen over Damascus,Syria early on Saturday. Image: Reuters
Russian Ambassador warns US of consequences
Russia's ambassador to the United States has warned that there would be consequences for the US-led military strikes on Syria, adding that it was not acceptable to insult Russia's president.
"A pre-designed scenario is being implemented," Russian Ambassador Anatoly Antonov said on Twitter. "Again, we are being threatened. We warned that such actions will not be left without consequences."
"Insulting the President of Russia is unacceptable and inadmissible," he added. "The US - the possessor of the biggest arsenal of chemical weapons - has no moral right to blame other countries."
Strikes Violate International Law: Syria
Syrian state media lambasted U.S.-led air strikes on Saturday as a breach of international law and said the attack had targeted army depots in the Homs area.
"The tripartite aggression is a flagrant violation of international law," state news agency SANA said.
Struck Syria, But Message to Anyone Using Chemical Weapons: British PM May
May said while the strike was targeted at Syria, it sent a message to anyone who used chemical weapons. Britain has accused Russia of being behind a nerve agent attack on a former Russian spy in England last month, a charge Moscow has rejected. "We cannot allow the use of chemical weapons to become normalised – within Syria, on the streets of the UK, or anywhere else in our world," May said.
Another Chemical Attack in Syria may Have Happened: US
Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said he is "absolutely confident" that Syrian President Bashar Assad is behind the alleged chemical attack on his people that the US and allies retaliated against Friday night. Mattis told reporters he is certain Assad conducted a chemical attack on innocent people. Mattis added that there may have been a second chemical attack in Syria.
Storm Shadow Missiles Used To Attack: Britain
Britain's Ministry of Defence said four Tornado jets using Storm Shadow missiles had taken part in the attack which had been designed to target a military facility where it was assessed Syria had stockpiled chemicals. "Very careful scientific analysis was applied to determine where best to target the Storm Shadows to maximise the destruction of the stockpiled chemicals and to minimise any risks of contamination to the surrounding area," the British MoD said in a statement.
President Trump's televised address on strikes against Syria
British Prime Minister Theresa May said on Saturday she had authorised British forces to conduct precision strikes against Syria to degrade its chemical weapons capability. "This is not about intervening in a civil war. It is not about regime change," May said in a statement. "It is about a limited and targeted strike that does not further escalate tensions in the region and that does everything possible to prevent civilian casualties."
"These are not the actions of a man. They are crimes of a monster instead," Trump said referring to Assad and his suspected role in the chemical weapons attacks.