Western alliance strike Syria
15 April 2018 4:06 PM GMT
What was primarily a Syrian civil war has assumed international ramifications after the Western alliance decided to strike following the chemical weapons attack in Douma. With the Russian led alliance masterminding all the attacks ostensibly to help their friend Syria bomb its own cities and people, the latest strike by the U.S., France and the U.K. came as no surprise. When France brought evidence of the chemical attacks, it was a matter of time before a co-ordinated strike could be planned and executed. Interestingly, forces occupying Syria were not the target, the facilities were. The Syrians claimed some targeted sites did not receive any damage. Satellite images, however, have shown extensive damage. The US Department of Defence released a map that showed their three Syrian airstrike targets.
Satellite images appear to show extensive airstrike damage to facilities allegedly involved with Syria's chemical weapons programme. France, the United States and the United Kingdom launched joint military action on Friday evening, firing 105 missiles at the three sites in Syria. Shortly after the airstrikes began, President Donald Trump said all three sites were "associated" with Syria's chemical weapon programme. Pentagon boasted the strikes "successfully hit every target." Russia, Syria's chief military ally, promptly disagreed with that report saying that Syrian air defence systems intercepted 71 out of 103 cruise missiles. And, although the Russians reported a number of Syrian military airfields, industrial sites and research facilities were hit, the Syrians had a different version to offer. Syrian state TV reported missiles targeting Homs were intercepted and did not cause damage. New satellite images appear to show there was extensive damage to two separate facilities in Homs. The first pictures are from Friday and the second are from Saturday. The US Department of Defence says that a chemical weapons storage facility was targeted, in addition to a chemical weapons equipment storage facility and command post.
One site hit by the barrage of missiles was the Bazrah Research Centre, "a scientific research centre" on the outskirts of Damascus. New satellite images show that building has been reduced to rubble. "We met our objectives. We hit the sites, the heart of the chemical weapons programme. So, it was mission accomplished," a Pentagon official said. But was it, really? If anything, the two alliances that seem to want more allies on their respective sides have geared themselves for a situation when a battered and bombed nation that accounted for so many innocent civilian lives can barely afford any more air strikes. Further escalation of a situation, that has well and truly spun out of control, can only lead to a major war. Let the powers that be opt for diplomatic measures. After all, there is still time for sense and sensibility to prevail.
Next Story
