WASHINGTON _ "Mission Accomplished!" President Donald Trump declared Saturday in reference to overnight missile strikes on Syria, and praised the military might of the United States and its allies Britain and France.
"A perfectly executed strike," Trump said on Twitter, even as top Pentagon officials said they still were assessing the damage. The military officials said they were confident that Syrian government installations that produced chlorine and sarin gas were destroyed or damaged.
The Pentagon said it knew of no civilian casualties "at this time."
Russia accused the U.S.-led coalition of committing a "military crime" and called for an emergency session of the United Nations Security Council, the third this week.
Trump's choice of words _ "mission accomplished" _ echoed similar phrasing on an infamous banner behind President George W. Bush in 2003 when he flew to an aircraft carrier and prematurely declared victory in the U.S.-led war in Iraq.
Speaking about Syria Friday night, Defense Secretary James Mattis acknowledged that the administration still did not know what chemical agent was used in an attack a week ago in the Damascus suburb of Douma, which killed dozens of people, including children. The U.S. and other Western powers have blamed the attack on Syrian President Bashar Assad, who is backed by Russia and Iran.
British Prime Minister Theresa May, whose country also was the site of a poison attack that has been blamed on Russia against a former Russian spy and his daughter, said in London that the West had tried "every possible" diplomatic means to stop Assad from using chemical weapons."
"But our efforts have been repeatedly thwarted" by Syria and Russia, she said.
