The U.N. Security Council is meeting today to discuss the crisis in Syria, including a deadly alleged chemical weapons attack over the weekend that killed dozens of people. Early this morning, two Israeli F-15 warplanes have reportedly bombed a Syrian air base used by Iranian forces. There are reports 14 died in the strikes, including Iranian nationals. Israel is said to have launched the raid from Lebanon’s airspace.
The Israeli bombing came after a suspected chemical weapons attack killed at least 60 people in the Syrian town of Douma, the last rebel-held town in Eastern Ghouta. The Syrian opposition blamed the Assad government for carrying out the attack on Saturday, but Syria denied having any role. The chemical attack came one day after Syrian forces launched an air and ground assault on Douma. While international officials are still investigating what happened, President Trump took to Twitter to directly accuse Russian President Vladimir Putin of playing a role. He wrote, “President Putin, Russia and Iran are responsible for backing Animal Assad.” He went on to warn there would be a “Big price…to pay.”
This all comes as today marks John Bolton’s first day as President Trump’s national security adviser. We’ll have more on the updates in Syria after headlines.