Pentagon says Syria strikes are 'one time shot' to send strong message to Assad

Published time: 14 Apr, 2018 02:09Edited time: 14 Apr, 2018 02:42

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U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis © Jonathan Ernst / Reuters

US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Saturday’s strikes on multiple targets were “harder” than those in 2017, but insisted no additional launches were planned.

"Right now this is a one time shot and I believe it sent a very strong message," Mattis said during a press briefing in the Pentagon, adding that there may be further attacks against the government of Bashar Assad “should he decide to use more chemical weapons in the future.”

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Specifying that more than twice as many weapons were fired as in April 2017, Mattis said that the aerial assault sought to “destroy the Syrian regime’s chemical weapons research development and production capabilities.”

"We were very precise and proportionate but at the same time it was a heavy strike," Mattis told reports.

Mattis added that the US, which has used manned aircraft to launch its missiles, had "gone to great lengths to avoid civilians and foreign casualties," while Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, General Joseph Dunford, who also took part in the briefing, said the Pentagon "specifically identified targets” to “mitigate the risk of Russian forces being involved."

Dunford said “normal deconfliction channel was used to deconflict airspace” with Moscow, but that the US did not “coordinate targets” with Moscow.

The general said that US rockets encountered some surface-to-air “activity” but confirmed that no losses were sustained on the attacking side.