US makes ‘adjustments’ to Daesh strikes amid ‘tensions’ in Syria
The United States and its allies are pulling back on airstrikes to allegedly target Daesh terrorists in Syria in the wake of US missile strikes against an airbase under the control of the Syrian government, which drew Russia’s ire.
US warships deployed to the eastern Mediterranean launched a barrage of 59 Tomahawk missiles against Shayrat Airfield, southeast of the western Syrian city of Homs, on Friday. Washington, without providing any evidence, alleged that the attack came in response to a chemical attack by the Syrian government in Khan Shaykhun.
The missile attack, which faced condemnation by Russia, Iran as well as the Syrian government, appeared to be the reason behind the “adjustments” the US-led coalition is making.
“We have made adjustments to our operations to account for the potential tensions that resulted from the strikes that were conducted because of the Syrian regime’s chemical attack,” Colonel John Dorrian, the spokesman for Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve, told reporters at the Pentagon on Wednesday.
The spokesman further asserted that the so-called coalition would continue its operations against the Daesh de facto capital, Raqqah, in northern Syria.
“But make no mistake, we do plan on continuing our operations and we do continue to look for ways to accelerate them,” Dorrian said.
He further noted that the forces are attempting to avoid a “miscalculation,” which could potentially make Russia confront the US in Syria.
“It’s just appropriate to make sure that you’re taking appropriate measures to account for that,” said the spokesman. “We don’t want to be reckless and we don’t want to have some type of incident that would cause a miscalculation, or some type of unintended incident.”
The so-called coalition reportedly conducted 123 strikes in past week in an attempt to allegedly liberate the Takfiri-held town.
"The intent is to get back as quickly as possible to our normal operations and as fast a pace as we can manage,” Dorrian said, adding that there was no evidence of any threats against US forces by Russia or the Syrian forces.
Damascus has categorically denied carrying out the gas attack, with the foreign ministry stressing that an Idlib airstrike had targeted a depot, where terrorists stored chemical weapons.
Moscow, in the meanwhile, maintains that the attack is a “false-flag” one orchestrated in an attempt to criminalize Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
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