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| Precise, overwhelming and effective – Pentagon gives details of Syria strike | Precise, overwhelming and effective – Pentagon gives details of Syria strike |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Pentagon hailed its strike on Syria as effective saying that they took the country's "chemical weapons" program years back, by "crippling and degrading" it. The US military claim there were no civilian casualties. | Pentagon hailed its strike on Syria as effective saying that they took the country's "chemical weapons" program years back, by "crippling and degrading" it. The US military claim there were no civilian casualties. |
| Lieutenant General Kenneth F. McKenzie, the Director of Joint Staff, briefed the reporters about the details of the strike. He claimed that the Syrian air defense efforts were “largely ineffective,” saying that “no Syrian weapon had any effect on what we did.” | |
| McKenzie said that the attack by the US and its allies targeted three sights in Syria, which he described as “the heart” of the country’s chemical weapons program. | |
| “We accomplished our military objections” and “dealt a severe blow” to the Syrian government’s ability to produce chemical weapons, he said. | |
| He said that the strikes targeted research and development facilities to incur more damage. When asked if there was the danger of chemicals spreading during the strike, the Pentagon representative said that there was no leak. | He said that the strikes targeted research and development facilities to incur more damage. When asked if there was the danger of chemicals spreading during the strike, the Pentagon representative said that there was no leak. |
| Pentagon spokeswoman Dana White claimed during the briefing that OPCW representatives were blocked from going to Ghouta. The strikes took place hours before the the chemical weapons watchdog was to start its fact finding mission at the site of the alleged attack after the Syrian government and Russia guaranteed them full access. | Pentagon spokeswoman Dana White claimed during the briefing that OPCW representatives were blocked from going to Ghouta. The strikes took place hours before the the chemical weapons watchdog was to start its fact finding mission at the site of the alleged attack after the Syrian government and Russia guaranteed them full access. |
| Journalists asked White why the US military would not share the evidence that they had of the chemical attack that they are sure happened the same way evidence of Soviet missiles at Cuba were shared in 1960s. "We are sure," she said claiming that Pentagon can't share that because it's intelligence information. | Journalists asked White why the US military would not share the evidence that they had of the chemical attack that they are sure happened the same way evidence of Soviet missiles at Cuba were shared in 1960s. "We are sure," she said claiming that Pentagon can't share that because it's intelligence information. |
| The attack wasn’t coordinated with Russia, but “the de-confliction channel [between the US and Russian forces] operated before and after the strike,” McKenzie said. “The Russian air defenses weren’t employed” as Syria was hit by missiles, he added. | |
| DETAILS TO FOLLOW | DETAILS TO FOLLOW |