President Donald Trump is being hailed by some Syrians for striking Bashar al-Assad Thursday for likely using chemical weapons against civilians Tuesday.
One Syrian refugee interviewed by The New York Times even said he would vote for Trump, despite being upset over Trump’s travel ban. He declared, “he’s a national hero now,” continuing “100 percent.”
“The Syrian people just gave up on anyone coming to their rescue,” another refugee said. He explained that Trump’s Thursday strike was “light at the end of the tunnel.”
Riyad Hijab, a former Syrian prime minister and opposition leader, told The Washington Post “President Trump was able to do in two days what President [Barack] Obama could not do in six years.” Hijab continued, “We call on President Trump to go even further and ground the entire Syrian Air Force, which has ruthlessly bombarded civilians with chemical weapons and explosive barrels for years with impunity.”
Trump administration officials have indicated they may strike Assad again if he uses chemical weapons. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley declared the U.S. is “prepared to do more” if Assad uses chemical weapons again. She forcefully declared that “Assad must never use chemical weapons again, ever.” Haley also took Russia and Iran to task for actively supporting the Assad regime, saying they too held “responsibility” for the attack.
The U.S. military is currently investigating whether Russia played a role in dropping the chemical weapons. Russia has carried out thousands of airstrikes on behalf of the regime. “The moral stain of the Assad regime could no longer go unanswered,” Haley said.
“President Trump is willing to act when governments and actors cross the line, cross the line on violating commitments they’ve made, and crossed the line in the most heinous of ways,” Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said after the strike.
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