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A highly placed Russian politician is likening President Donald Trump to Adolf Hitler after the launch of airstrikes against Syria, and says he regards the action as a move against Russia.
Alexander Sherin, deputy head of the State Duma's defence committee, says Trump "can be called Adolf Hitler No. 2 of our time — because, you see, he even chose the time that Hitler attacked the Soviet Union."
That's according to state news agency RIA-Novosti. The Nazi forces' opening attack against the USSR in 1941 was launched around 4 a.m.
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10:20 p.m.
The British defence ministry says "initial indications" show that the airstrikes against Syria produced a "successful attack" on a Syrian military facility.
The U.K., U.S. and France launched the attacks near Damascus early Saturday. The U.K. ministry says in a statement that while the effectiveness of the strike is still being analyzed, "initial indications are that the precision of the Storm Shadow weapons and meticulous target planning have resulted in a successful attack."
British Prime Minister Theresa May is describing the attack as neither "about intervening in a civil war" nor "about regime change," but a limited and targeted strike that "does not further escalate tensions in the region" and does everything possible to prevent civilian casualties.
May says, "We would have preferred an alternative path. But on this occasion there is none."
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10:17 p.m.
Defence Secretary Jim Mattis says he is "absolutely confident" that Syrian President Bashar Assad is behind the alleged chemical attack on his people that the U.S. and allies retaliated against Friday night.
Mattis tells reporters he is certain Assad conducted a chemical attack on innocent people.
He says the U.S. is "very much aware of one of the chemical agents used." And he says there may have been a second.
President Donald Trump announced Friday that the U.S., France and Britain had launched military strikes against Syria to punish Assad for his alleged use of chemical weapons and to deter him from doing it again.
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10:15 p.m.
Defence Secretary James Mattis says the U.S. has no reports of suffering any losses during the initial airstrikes on Syria Friday.
Mattis says "right now this is a one-time shot" but is not ruling out further attacks. President Donald Trump had said earlier that the campaign against the regime of Bashar Assad could be "sustained."
The defence secretary says the airstrikes were launched against several sites that he says helped provide Assad's ability to create chemical weapons. Mattis says the Syrian government used chemical weapons on its own people last week.
Mattis says the Pentagon will provide more information on the attack Saturday.
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10:10 p.m.
Defence Secretary Jim Mattis says military strikes in Syria are "directed at the Syrian regime" and they have "gone to great lengths to avoid civilians and foreign casualties."
Mattis spoke Friday night after President Donald Trump announced that the U.S., France and Britain launched military strikes on Syria to punish President Bashar Assad for his alleged use of chemical weapons against civilians and to deter him from doing it again.
Mattis is asking that "responsible nations" join in condemning the Assad regime.
United States
