59 Tomahawk cruise missiles were launched at a Syrian government airfield Thursday evening.
The missiles were ordered launched by President Donald Trump in retaliation for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s deadly chemical attack on Syrian civilians earlier this week.
The Pentagon’s official statement stated, “a total of 59 [Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles] targeted aircraft, hardened aircraft shelters, petroleum and logistical storage, ammunition supply bunkers, air defense systems, and radars,” and called the action a “proportional response to Assad’s heinous act.”
“On Tuesday, Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad launched a horrible chemical weapons attack on innocent civilians. Using a deadly nerve agent, Assad choked out the lives of helpless men, women and children. It was a slow and brutal death for so many. Even beautiful babies were cruelly murdered in this very barbaric attack,” Trump stated at a short press conference in Mar-a-Lago.
“Tonight, I ordered a targeted military strike on the air field in Syria from where the chemical attack was launched. It is in this vital national security of the United States to prevent and deter the spread and use of deadly chemical weapons,” Trump added.
Trump, who has been vocally anti-war for over a decade and a half and as recently as his general election campaign and had actively campaigned as the less interventionist candidate, stating that Clinton would get us into a war with Russia, said yesterday that his “attitude towards Syria and Assad has changed very much.” That change in attitude has led to a quick and unrelenting missile attack on Syria, something he had advocated against until this point.
Clinton advocated for the same actions Trump took earlier Thursday while speaking at the Women of the World Summit in New York, saying we “should take out his airfields and prevent him from being able to use them to bomb innocent people and drop Sarin gas on them.”
Trump regularly tweeted to former President Obama during his second term asking him not to attack Syria.
AGAIN, TO OUR VERY FOOLISH LEADER, DO NOT ATTACK SYRIA – IF YOU DO MANY VERY BAD THINGS WILL HAPPEN & FROM THAT FIGHT THE U.S. GETS NOTHING!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 5, 2013
Trump also previously called for the former President to attain Congressional approval before utilizing military forces to attack Syria, which is something Trump failed to do before ordering an attack in Syria on Thursday.
The President must get Congressional approval before attacking Syria-big mistake if he does not!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 30, 2013
After condemning an act of terror by Syria on its own people, and mourning the loss of life to an innocent population, Trump is retaliating by putting more lives at risk by attacking Syria.
This attack comes exactly 100 years after the United States entered World War I.
Photo Credit: Robyn Beck/Getty Images
Nicholas Amato
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