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News: US fires cruise missiles on Syria - live updates

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Syrien USA Luftangriff auf Militärbasis (picture-alliance/AP Photo/US Navy/S. Price)
Germany, France and the UK have endorsed the missile strike on a Syrian army base, which the US launched in retaliation to the suspected gas attack in Syria. DW brings you the latest reactions from around the world.
  • American destroyers in the Mediterranean fired almost 60 Tomahawk missiles at the Sharayat airfield in Homs, used as the base for Syrian jets allegedly involved in the chemical weapons strike. At least three Syrian soldiers and two civilians were reported killed, but preliminary info suggested no Russian casualties.
  • President Donald Trump said that the move was in the "vital national security interest of the United States," marking a major policy reversal for his administration.
  • Russian President Vladimir Putin called the strike an "act of agression against a soveriegn state in violation of international law."
  • German Chancellor Angela Merkel and France's President Francois Hollande blamed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, saying that his crimes provoked the response.
  • Read the full story on the US military action in Syria here
  • All updates in UTC:
    10:23 French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault says that Paris urged Russia to negotiate.
    "We have to stop the hypocrisy. If Russia is acting in good faith it should stop and negotiate," he said. "We do not wish to raise the stakes, but to find a solution. You can not deal with reality (use of chemical weapons) by resorting to propaganda."
    10:20 The US attack killed nine civilians, including four children, according to the Syrian state news agency SANA.
    10:16 NATO head Jens Stoltenberg said that Syrian authorities carried the blame for the missile strike.
    "Any use of chemical weapons is unacceptable, cannot go unanswered, and those responsible must be held accountable," he added.
    10:13 With the international community divided on the US strike in Syria, there is a risk of the shockwaves spreading far beyond Syrian borders, says DW's Lewis Sanders.
    Read: US polarizes world with attack on Syrian regime
    10:12 An unidentified warplane bombed the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhoun, the site of the earlier chemical weapons attack, on Friday, according to the  Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
    10:10 Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu called for the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad.
    "This regime must be removed from leading Syria as soon as possible and the best way to do that is by starting the transitional process," Cavusoglu said in televised remarks.
    10:08 Russia's President Vladimir Putin will hold a meeting of his security council later on Friday. Moscow would keep technical and military channels of communication open with Washington, but would not exchange any information through them, Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
    10:05 Russia must play a "decisive" role in resolving the Syrian crisis alongside the UN, Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said.
    09:57 The effectiveness of Syrian air defense systems will be boosted in the near future, in order to "protect the most sensitive objects of the Syrian infrastructure" Russian military spokesman Igor Konashenkov said. He added that only 23 Tomahawk missiles struck the base out of 59 launched, making the US action "extremely ineffective."
    09:53 US Senator and one-time US presidential candidate John McCain says Donald Trump's strikes send an "important message:" 
    09:45 Danish Prime Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen praised the attack on Twitter.
    "Good that cowardly assaults on women, men and children have consequences. The United States has clearly indicated that (Syrian President Bashar) Assad's atrocities do not go unpunished."
    09:35 The key rival of chancellor Merkel in the upcoming parliementary elections Germany, SPD chief Martin Schulz, urged Europe to put in more effort into resolving the Syrian crisis.
    "For far too long, we the Europeans have only looked at the US and Russia," he said. The EU needs to take more "political, not military" responsibility, he added.
    09:25 EU Council President Donald Tusk tweeted that the strike showed US "resolve:"
    09:13 The US says that the targeted army compound served as a base to launch the chemical weapons attack that killed at least 80 people.
  • 09:08 French President Francois Hollande was meeting with his top security officials in Paris to discuss next steps in Syria.
  • 09:05 Russia's Sergey Lavrov hopes that the US missile strikes would not lead to "irreparable damage" between Moscow and Washington.
    08:54 French far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen warned that interventions in Iraq and Libya boosted Islamic terrorism.
    The US president Donald Trump had indicated that he would not make his country  "the world's policeman, and that's exactly what he did yesterday," she told France-2 television.
    08:52 Italy's Foreign Minister Angelino Alfano says the attack was a "reasonable reaction" and a deterrent to regime's chemical weapons use.
    08:48 Syrian rebels welcomed the US military strike in Syria, but urged more military action, according to the AFP news agency.
    08:41 Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says Moscow will demand an explanation from the US on Syria strikes.
    08:38 Syrian ambassador in Moscow says that the US strikes confirm that Washington support and coordinate with the 'Islamic State' and al Nusra.
    "It a clear demonstration that America supports terror," Ambassador Riad Haddad said.
    08:30 Global financial markets responded cautiously after the strike, according to DW's business department.

    08:24 The attack destroyed nine planes in the Syrian base, according to Russian state TV.


08:17 Despite the US strike, the diplomatic visit to Moscow by the US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is likely to proceed as planned, senior Russian MP Leonid Slutsky told Rossya 24.
08:07 Ankara repeated its calls to establish a "no fly" zone over Syria, saying that the strike was a "positive response
to the Assad regime's war crimes" 
07:54 Syria's Assad carries "sole responsibility for this development," said German Chancellor Angela Merkel and France's President Francois Hollande.
"His repeated use of chemical weapons and his crimes against the population demanded sanctioning," they said.
07:49 German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel described the US move as "understandable."
07:45 Russia has decided to "halt" its agreement with the US on avoiding incidents in Syrian airspace after cruise missile strikes.
07:40 Democratic congressman Ted Lieu urged more information on Trump's policies after the strike.
07:34 The strike prompted a strong response from US social media users, with many pointing out President Trump's earlier stances on bombing Syria.
07:31 China recommends avoiding "further deterioration" and urges relevant parties to stick to poiltical statements in Syria as Chinese President Xi Jinping continues his diplomatic visit to the US.
07:27 The Syrian army said raised the death toll to six people, adding that the strike caused "significant damage.
The US "carried out a flagrant aggression with missiles against one of our airbases in the central region," a spokesman said on state television.
07:21 Washington had notified NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg of their plans to attack the Syrian army, according to NATO.
The alliance "can confirm that NATO Secretary General was informed by the US Secretary of Defense prior to the strikes."
07:16 Senior Russian lawmaker Leonid Slutsky said that Russia was forced to fight terrorism on its own.
"We should not eliminate the possibility that the chemical attack was a provocation to undermine the rhetoric used by US President Donald Trump and return the US on the anti-Assad course," he said.
07:11 Tokyo voiced its support for the US' move to "prevent the spread and use of chemical weapons."
"Many innocent people became victims from the chemical attacks," said Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. "The international community was shocked by the tragedy that left many young children among the victims."
07:08 The UK says that the strike was designed to deter the regime from any new chemical weapons attacks.
"We've not been asked to be involved in this, this was not a matter for the coalition that's in Syria and Iraq fighting [the Islamic State militia]," Fallon said. "This was a United States operation, but let me emphasize again we fully support it."
07:04 Damacus does not expect military escalation with the US, said Syrian information minister.
"I believe this strike was limited in time and space, and it was expected," Minister Ramez Turjman said in a phone interview with Syrian state television.
07:01 The strike on Syrian army was "designed" not to involve Russian personnel, said British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon.
06:50 Confused at to who is fighting who in Syria? DW has the overview of the many fractions and world powers engaged in the long and complicated war.
06:45 US Senator Rand Paul said that the US president needed an approval from Congress to use military force.
06:41 Warsaw praised the US as a "guarantor of world peace and order," supporting the strike in a statement.
06:25 Missile strikes would raise tensions between Moscow and Washington, and not contribute to a political solution for the Syrian crisis, German lawmaker Jürgen Trittin told "Deutschlandfunk."
06:21 No Russians were hurt in the US missile strike on the Syrian base, senior Russian lawmaker in charge of veteran affairs told Interfax.
06: 17 Russia's President Vladimir Putin regards the US missile strike as an act of "aggression against a sovereign state in violation of the international law, and also based on a made-up pretext," said his spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
06:12 Syrian government must be fully punished in the international arena, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Kurtulmus said, adding that international community must maintain its stance against Assad.
06:08 The US strike "inflicts fundamental damage on the relations between the US and Russia, which are already in a lamentable state," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
6:02 France was informed of the US plans to conduct a missile strike ahead of time, French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault told France Info radio.
Russia and Iran needed to understand that supporting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, he added, stressing that France was not seeking confrontation with those two countries.
05:58 Lebanese TV station al-Mayadeen says that Syrian army had evacuated most of its warplanes before the US attack
05:56 Commenting on the US move, Iran said that "unilateral action is dangerous, destructive and violates the principles of international law."
05:54 The UK endorsed the missile strike as an "appropriate response to the barbaric chemical weapons attack launched by the Syrian regime."
05:50 Was the regime of President Bashar al-Assad responsible for the chemical weapons attack in northern Syria? DW spoke to several experts who suggested it could have been jihadi rebels.

Read: Is Assad to blame for the chemical weapons attack in Syria?
05:47 The death toll in the US missile strike has risen to five, with seven injured, Homs governor Talal Barazi said.
05:36 Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer praised the US strike as a "right thing to do."
05:31 "Russian cruise missiles hit the terrorists, the US missiles strike Syrian government forces who are spearheading the fight against the terrorists," senior Russian lawmaker Konstantin Kosachev said on his Facebook page.
President Trump was pressured into action by the allegedly "irrefutable evidence" Kosachev added.
"How can we not remember the proverbial Iraqi anthrax vial held by Colin Powel?" the Russian politician asked, alluding to the false rationale for the Iraq war.
05:25 Iran, one of the main allies of the Assad regime, strongly condemned the US missile attack on Syrian targets.
05:17 Saudi Arabia backed the US strike, saying it was a "courageous decision" by President Donald Trump.
05:11 The missile strike raises doubts about Russia's coalition with the US on Syria, said Konstantin Kosachev, head of the foriegn affairs committee in the Russian parliament.
05:07 Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says his government "strongly supports the swift and just response of the United States."
05:04 At least four Syrian soldiers were killed in the US strike and the base was "almost completely destroyed," Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
04:59 President Trump said Assad "choked out the lives" of men, women, and children.
"Tonight I call on all civilized nations to join us in seeking to end the slaughter and bloodshed in Syria," he added.
04:57 Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan backed the US military action as "appropriate and just" adding that President Bashar al-Assad "must be held accountable."
04:55 The US Department of Defense released footage of the missile strike online:
04:53 The Syrian National Coalition (SNC) opposition group welcomed the strike on the Syrian airbase.
04:49  The Pentagon did not know if there were Russian troops at the Syrian airbase, but they have done "all they could" to avoid harming them, US military spokesman told Interfax.
04:44 Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he "fully supports" President Trump's decision.
04:37 Moscow will call for a an urgent Security Council meeting over the attack, according to a senior Russian MP.
04:30 The US missile strike caused deaths at the Syrian base, Homs governor told Our Sources.
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