The office of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad labelled the US air strikes "reckless" and "irresponsible".

The office of Syria's president is calling the US missile strike against one of its air bases on Friday [NZT] "reckless" and "irresponsible", while Russia has also condemned the action as "a violation of international law".

US President Donald Trump ordered the attack in response to a gruesome chemical weapons attack in the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhoun, where more than 80 people were killed on Tuesday.

Sharply escalating the US' military role in Syria, two US warships fired 59 cruise missiles from the eastern Mediterranean Sea against the airbase controlled by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces, US officials said.

US DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE A combination image released by the US Department of Defense which they say shows the impact crater associated with the use of chemical weapons in Syria.

The attack was widely backed by other world leaders, with Trump declaring he acted in America's "vital national security interest" against Assad.

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At least nine civilians were killed, including four children, according to the Syrian military.

Footage captured on a mobile phone allegedly shows US air strikes hitting a Syrian airbase, according to Arabic news channel Ekhbariya TV.

In a statement, Assad's office says Friday's strikes were "shortsighted" and reflect a continuation of policy regardless of which administration that is based on targeting and "subjugating people". The statement says the attack on the Shayrat air base near Homs was not based on true facts.

RUSSIA'S FURY

Any hope of Russia and the US co-operating on the Syria crisis appears dead after the strikes.

MC3 (SW) Robert S. Price The missiles were fired from warships in the Mediterranean Sea.

The Kremlin has said the air strikes were carried out on "invented pretext" and do significant damage to US - Russia ties.

The US strike was "aggression against a sovereign state in violation of international law", the Kremlin said.



"President [Vladimir] Putin considers the American strikes against Syria an aggression against a sovereign government in violations of the norms of international law, and under a far-fetched pretext," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

"This step by Washington is causing significant damage to Russian-American relations, which are already in a deplorable state."

Russian media broadcast video that allegedly shows the aftermath of the targeted missile attack launched by the US against the al-Shayrat air base.

He said the Russian president considered the attack and attempt to distract attention from the heavy civilian casualties caused by the U.S.-backed offensive to capture Mosul, Iraq from the Islamic State group.

"This step is not taking us any closer to the final goal in the fight against international terrorism, but, on the contrary, it is creating a serious obstacle to the establishment of an international coalition to combat it and efficiently counter this global evil," Peskov said.

RUSSIA SUSPENDS AIR DEAL

CARLOS BARRIA/REUTERS Trump ordered the strikes just a day after he pointed the finger at Assad for this week's chemical attack.

Russia said it was suspending a deal with the US to prevent mid-air collisions over Syria in response to the US strike on a Syrian air base.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said on Friday statement that Moscow was suspending a memorandum with the US to prevent incidents and ensure flight safety.

Under the memorandum, signed after Russia launched an air campaign in Syria in September 2015, Russia and the US had exchanged information about their flights to avoid incidents in the crowded skies over Syria.

US NAVY Forces on board guided missile destroyer USS Ross, pictured in 2014.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he hoped US missile strikes on Syria would not irreparably damage relations between Moscow and Washington.

"This is an act of aggression, on an absolutely made-up pretext," Lavrov told a news conference in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. "It reminds me of the situation in 2003 when the United States and Britain, along with some of their allies, attacked Iraq."

He said Russia would demand Washington explain why it conducted the strikes.

HANDOUT Shayrat Airfield in Homs, Syria is seen in this DigitalGlobe satellite image released by the US after announcing the missile strikes.

"I hope this provocation will not lead to irreparable damage," Lavrov said.

AIRCRAFT DESTROYED

US cruise missile strikes on Syria's Shayrat air base caused "significant" damage to the site, Russia's RIA Novosti agency quoted a base employee as saying on Friday.

"All the aircraft on the base have been taken out of action, it's safe to say they are completely destroyed," the employee, who was not named, told RIA.

The agency quoted Syrian television as reporting that a fire at the air base was continuing.

RUSSIA MOCKS RAIDS

REUTERS US President Donald Trump says he ordered a targeted military strike on the airfield in Syria from which a deadly chemical attack was launched.

The Russian Defence Ministry said Syrian air defences would be beefed up after US cruise missiles struck an air base in western Syria, Russian news agencies reported.

The ministry mocked the effectiveness of the US strikes as "extremely low" saying that 23 missiles had hit their targets but it was unclear where 36 others had landed.

However, the US military says 58 of the 59 missiles struck their intended targets.

GETTY IMAGES A survivor of the Assad regime's suspected chemical attack in Khan Shaykhun town of Idlib district, receives treatment.

A US official says the initial assessment suggests one of the missiles malfunctioned. The missiles hit multiple aircraft and hardened aircraft shelters and destroyed the fuel area.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, says information is still coming in from the site of the strike.

TRUMP TAKES ACTION

Facing his biggest foreign policy crisis since taking office in January, Trump took the toughest direct US action yet in Syria's six-year-old civil war, raising the risk of confrontation with Russia and Iran, Assad's two main military backers.

US officials insisted they informed Russian forces ahead of the missile attacks and that there were no strikes on sections of the base where Russians were present. But they said the administration did not seek Moscow's approval.

"Years of previous attempts at changing Assad's behaviour have all failed and failed very dramatically," Trump said from his Florida resort, Mar-a-Lago, where he was attending a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Trump ordered the strikes just a day after he pointed the finger at Assad for this week's chemical attack, which killed at least 70 people, many of them children, in the Syrian town of Khan Sheikhoun. The Syrian government has denied it was behind the attack.

Fifty-nine Tomahawk missiles were launched from the USS Porter and USS Ross around 12.40pm on Friday (8:40pm Thursday EDT), striking multiple targets - including the airstrip, aircraft and fuel stations - on the Shayrat Air Base, which the Pentagon says was used to store chemical weapons.

"Initial indications are that this strike has severely damaged or destroyed Syrian aircraft and support infrastructure and equipment at Shayrat Airfield, reducing the Syrian government's ability to deliver chemical weapons," said Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis.

SEVERAL KILLED

The Syrian military called the attack a "blatant aggression" that would undermine its war on terror. At least nine civilians were killed, including four children, according to the miliarty.

The army said the missile attack caused extensive damage, adding it would respond by continuing its campaign to "crush terrorism" and restore peace and security to all of Syria.

A statement from the army command said Friday's strikes had made the United States "a partner" of Islamic State, the ex-Nusra Front and other "terrorist organisations".

'PROPORTIONATE'

Syrian state TV said that "American aggression" had targeted a Syrian military base with "a number of missiles and cited a Syrian military source as saying the strike had "led to losses."

Trump said: "Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad launched a horrible chemical weapons attack on innocent civilians. ... Tonight I ordered a targeted military strike on the airfield in Syria from where the chemical attack was launched."

"It is in this vital national security interest of the United States to prevent and deter the spread and use of deadly chemical weapons," Trump said.

"There can be no dispute that Syria used banned chemical weapons, violated its obligations under the chemical weapons convention and ignored the urging of the UN Security Council," he added.

Trump appeared to have opted for measured and targeted air attacks instead of a full-blown assault on Assad's forces and installations. "We feel the strike itself was proportionate," said US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

The relatively quick response to the chemical attack came as Trump faced a growing list of global problems, from North Korea and China to Iran and Islamic State, and may have been intended to send a message to friends and foes alike of his resolve to use military force if deemed necessary.

"One question is whether Russia will respond in any meaningful way," said a senior US official involved in planning the raid. "If they do, they will be further complicit in the actions of the Syrian regime."

'SOMETHING SHOULD HAPPEN'

Trump said earlier in the day that "something should happen" with Assad. Officials from the Pentagon and State Department met all day to discuss plans for the missile strikes.

US military action put the new president at odds with Russia, which has air and ground forces in Syria after intervening there on Assad's side in 2015 and turning the tide against mostly Sunni Muslim rebel groups.

Trump has until now focused his Syria policy almost exclusively on defeating Islamic State militants in northern Syria, where US special forces are supporting Arab and Kurdish armed groups.

The deployment of military force against Assad marked a major reversal for Trump.

Obama set a "red line" in 2012 against Assad's use of chemical weapons. When Obama then threatened military action after a 2013 chemical attack, Trump issued a series of tweets opposing the idea, including "Do NOT attack Syria, fix U.S.A."

Obama backtracked on the air strikes, and after the latest attack, Trump was quick to blame his Democratic predecessor for "weakness and irresolution" that he said emboldened Assad.

NEW ZEALAND, WORLD RESPONDS

A spokeswoman for Prime Minister Bill English confirmed the Government had been given a heads up by the US a couple of hours in advance of the raid.

The Northern Advocate newspaper had reported that English appeared to be surprised when asked about the strikes at Whangarei Town Basin, but the spokeswoman said this was not the case.

The advice went to both Defence Minister Gerry Brownlee, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. A spokeswoman for Brownlee said: "The Minister of Defence was informed prior to the attack via the Ministry of Defence."

Foreign Minister Murray McCully expressed "understanding" of why the US had taken unilateral action, but seemed to stop short of fully endorsing it.

"It is becoming clear that Syrian government forces were responsible for the outrageous attacks where chemical weapons were used," McCully said.

"These events are horrific. It is critical that the international community emphatically demand an end to this violence, and that the Syrian government be held to account.

"In the absence of an adequate response from the United Nations Security Council, we can understand why the United States has taken targeted unilateral action to try and prevent further such attacks by the Syrian regime."

A spokeswoman for McCully said New Zealand had not been asked and would need to consider it if or when a request was received.

But the Green Party has criticised the US for acting unilaterally in its cruise missile attack on Shayrat airfield. "This hasty military action by the US, without consultation with other major powers, threatens global security," Green global affairs spokesman Kennedy Graham said.

"We expect and deserve cooler heads than this from our global leaders. No wrong has ever been righted, no child has ever been protected and no conflict has ever been solved by launching missiles."

Meanwhile, Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said his government "strongly supports the swift and just response of the United States" in launching a rocket attack.

"This was a calibrated, proportionate and targeted response. It sends a strong message to the Assad regime, and ... has been struck at the very airfield from which the chemical attack was delivered," he said.

"But we are not at war with the Assad regime and the United States have made it clear that they are not seeking to overthrow the Assad regime," he added.

US Senator John McCain, the chairman of the country's Senate Armed Services Committee, says Trump must "be prepared to take other action" in Syria.

In an interview on MSNBC, the former presidential candidate praised Friday's air strikes as a measured approach to chemical weapons attacks by the Syrian government that "restores credibility" to the US and gives Trump a chance to "reboot with the American people". McCain says the Syrian air force must be neutralised and that new demilitarised "safe zones" should be created to address the humanitarian crisis.

Also, McCain says it would help for Trump to stop impulsively tweeting. He says: "I would love to see the tweeting stop. But I'd also like to see pigs fly. ... I just think it's in his DNA. But perhaps there will be more restraint."

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada fully supports what he called the United States' "limited and focused action" in carrying out a missile strike on Syria.

Trudeau says in a statement the Assad regime's use of chemical weapons against its own people cannot be ignored.

He says these gruesome attacks can't be permitted to continue operating with impunity. He also says this week's attack in southern Idlib is a war crime.

The UK has also backed Trump's actions.



A Downing Street spokeswoman said: "The UK government fully supports the US action, which we believe was an appropriate response to the barbaric chemical weapons attack launched by the Syrian regime, and is intended to deter further attacks."

The European Union says the strikes had the "understandable intention" of preventing more chemical attacks, but stressed that a negotiate solution was the only way out of the conflict.

"The US has informed the European Union that ... they launched a strike on Shayrat Airfield in Syria with the understandable intention to prevent and deter the spread and use of deadly chemical weapons," the EU's top diplomat Federica Mogherini said on behalf of the bloc's 28 member states.

"The US also informed us that these strikes are limited and focused on preventing and deterring further use of chemical weapons atrocities ... Those found responsible should be sanctioned within the framework of the United Nations."

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan hailed the attack as a positive development, but said it was not enough on its own and "serious steps" were needed to protect the Syrian people.

"We find it a positive and concrete step taken against the war crimes of the Assad regime. Is it enough? I don't find it enough. It is time to take serious steps for the protection of innocent Syrian people," Erdogan told a rally in the southern province of Hatay.

"The international community has the capability to stop the regime and terrorist organisations. I hope the active stance that the United States displayed in Idlib is a beginning with regards to such developments."

The United Arab Emirates, which hosts some 4000 American troops, said the US had its "full support". Anwar Gargash, minister of state for foreign affairs, praised Trump's "courageous and wise decision". That mirrored earlier language used by Saudi Arabia.

The tiny island nation of Bahrain described the US missile strike on Syria as "needed to stop the bloodshed" in that country's war. That island kingdom hosts the US Navy's 5th Fleet.

Rulers in both Arab countries long have been suspicious of Iran and its influence in Syria and the greater region. Both have opposed the rule of the embattled Assad.

The New Zealand dollar and share market both dipped slightly after news of the attack. Foreign exchange firm HiFX said the dollar was lower immediately after the attack, but it has since recovered to about US69.7c.

The NZX fell just 0.3 per cent, and for the day was down 0.6 per cent.

UN VOTE HAD BEEN DELAYED

US officials had said they hoped for a vote on Thursday night (US time) on a UN Security Council resolution that would condemn the chemical attack, but with council members still negotiating the text into the evening, the British Mission's political coordinator Stephen Hickey tweeted the vote wouldn't take place until later.

At the UN, the United States, which currently holds the presidency of the Security Council, drafted a resolution along with Britain and France that condemns the use of chemical weapons, particularly in the attack on Khan Sheikhoun, "in the strongest terms."

Russia objected to key provisions in the resolution and negotiations have been underway to try to bridge the differences. Britain's deputy ambassador Peter Wilson said "what we want is a unanimous resolution ... and we want to see this done soon."

A day earlier, Russia had argued against holding Assad's government responsible.

France's UN Ambassador Francois Delattre indicated difficulty in reaching agreement on a resolution. "We have engaged into negotiations in good faith to adopt a resolution - but make no mistake about it we need a robust text," he said. "We cannot be willing to have a text at any cost."

- AP, Reuters, Washington Post