WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump said Thursday that “something should happen” with regard to Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad in the wake of this week’s chemical attack, which US officials say he perpetrated.
“I think what Assad did is terrible. I think what happened in Syria is one of the truly egregious crimes. It shouldn’t have happened. It shouldn’t be allowed to happen,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. “I think what happened in Syria is a disgrace to humanity. He’s there, and I guess he’s running things, so something should happen.” Trump is expected to meet with his national security team later Thursday in Mar-a-Lago, according to a White House official.
Defense Secretary James Mattis will lead Trump through his available options, including what the potential consequences for military action could be. The White House official confirmed that in addition to Mattis, three other Cabinet secretaries are currently in Mar-a-Lago, including Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin.
Sources said that Trump is considering military action in Syria in retaliation for the chemical attack. The US has led a coalition bombing campaign against ISIS targets in Syria and has special operations forces posted there, but has resisted any direct military action against the Assad regime.
While Trump declined to say directly whether he believes Assad should be deposed, Tillerson said Thursday afternoon that Assad’s fate is “uncertain” and that the US is taking steps to bolster an international effort to remove Assad. Tillerson’s tough words also extended to Russia, Syria’s primary benefactor, whom he warned to “consider carefully their continued support for the Assad regime.”
Both Trump and Tillerson’s comments made clear the President’s thinking on the US role in Syria has changed in the wake of the chemical attack, whose victims were seen writhing in agony in videos broadcast around the world. The source said the President had not firmly decided to go ahead with it but said he was discussing possible actions with Mattis. “I don’t want to mention that,” Trump said when asked if he told members of Congress he plans to take military action. “But the answer is no, I haven’t.”
US officials told the media that the Pentagon has long-standing options to strike Syria’s chemical weapons capability and has presented those options to the administration. The sources stressed a decision has not been made.
Sen. John McCain, an Arizona Republican, told reporters Thursday that it’s his “understanding” that Trump is consulting with Mattis and national security adviser H.R. McMaster on Syria. He does not know what they will recommend to him, but believes they will provide him with an “excellent” option. McCain and Sen. Lindsey Graham issued a joint statement earlier in the day calling for military action, recommending an international coalition “to ground Assad’s air force.”
“We agree with the President that Assad hasl crossed a line with his latest use of chemical weapons. The message from the United States must be that this will not stand. We must show that no foreign power can or will protect Assad now. He must pay a punitive cost for this horrific attack,” they said.
They added: “In addition to other measures, the United States should lead an international coalition to ground Assad’s air force. This capability provides Assad a strategic advantage in his brutal slaughter of innocent civilians, both through the use of chemical weapons as well as barrel bombs, which kill far more men, women and children on a daily basis … Ultimately, the grounding of Assad’s air force can and should be part of a new comprehensive strategy to end the conflict in Syria.”
Trump on Wednesday called the chemical attack that killed more than 70 people in Syria as a “heinous” act that had changed his views on Assad. “Yesterday’s chemical attack, a chemical attack that was so horrific in Syria against innocent people, including women, small children and even beautiful little babies, their deaths were an affront to humanity,” Trump said, speaking in the Rose Garden alongside Jordan’s King Abdullah.
“These heinous actions by the Assad regime cannot be tolerated. The United States stands with our allies across the globe to condemn this horrific attack and all other horrific attacks, for that matter.” Earlier this week, the Trump administration had offered a pessimistic view on Assad’s fate in Syria, citing political realities there as a reason the brutal dictator isn’t likely to leave anytime soon. “There is not a fundamental option of regime change, as there has been in the past,” White House press secretary Sean Spicer said Tuesday.
The lack of options in Syria isn’t a new conundrum — President Barack Obama often cited the country’s civil war as the predicament that haunted him most. The Trump administration has mustered the display of outrage that many world partners were seeking, including convening an emergency session at the United Nations Security Council, chaired by US Ambassador Nikki Haley.
