Pm told time for action
Shock & awe strikes to hit despot where it hurts
Military response to chemical attack nears as Cabinet agree it can’t go “unchallenged”
DEMO Protest outside Downing Street BY CHRIS HUGHES Defence and Security Editor & ANDREW GREGORY Political Editor BASHAR al-Assad’s palaces could be hit as military chiefs draw up plans for a shock and awe blitz against the Syrian despot.
The claim came as UK ministers agreed to “take action” over the Assad regime’s barbaric chemical attack on civilians at the weekend.
It was assumed chemical weapon sites would be the only major targets of a US-led sea and air strike.
But it is now believed military bases, intelligence HQs and even opulent homes owned by Assad and his cronies are considered fair game.
An intelligence source told the Record: “The 2017 retaliatory strikes against Assad’s chemical weapons sites had little effect. This time the feeling is you can attack Assad’s military but that does not really affect him personally, so he needs to be hit where he can feel it.
“It is highly likely we will see an attack that is bigger than before and more wide-ranging in terms of the targeting – perhaps including palaces and other homes.
“If Assad gets hit in the process then that will not concern American military commanders.”
The US, Britain and France are convinced Assad’s regime was behind Saturday’s chemical attack on Douma – the last major rebel stronghold near capital Damascus.
The atrocity killed up to 75 people, including children, and injured more than 500. It was reported last night that US officials obtained blood and urine samples from victims that tested positive for chemicals – mainly chlorine and some for a nerve agent.
As the US and its allies prepared to respond, President Donald Trump, who warned on Wednesday that missiles were “coming”, kept the world guessing yesterday by tweeting he “never said when”.
Any strike will be in defiance of warnings from Russia of “dire consequences” if its Middle East ally is attacked. Britain is already at the centre of growing diplomatic tension with Moscow over the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia last month.
Yesterday Prime Minister Theresa May summoned ministers back from the Easter recess for an emergency Cabinet war meeting at No10.
As anti-war protesters waved placards outside, Mrs May detailed how Britain’s strategic objective for military action was to prevent the “normalisation” of chemical weapons use.
She said the attack was “a shocking and barbaric act which killed up to 75 people, including children, in the most appalling and inhumane way”.
A spokesman said: “Cabinet agreed it was vital that the use of chemical weapons did not go unchallenged.
“Cabinet agreed on the need to take action to alleviate humanitarian distress and deter further use of chemical weapons by the Assad regime.
“Cabinet agreed the Prime Minister should continue to work with allies in the United States and France to coordinate an international response.” However, there was a growing row over whether MPs needed to give the green light for military action.
In 2013, Parliament voted to stop David Cameron ordering UK forces to join US strikes after another chemical weapons attack near Damascus.
This time it is possible Mrs May could win a Commons majority for intervention, but she may press ahead before Parliament returns.
And Tory MP Zac Goldsmith warned: “We need a clear response to the Syrian chemical outrage. But
Parliament must be involved before any action is agreed.
“Specifically, the Government needs to explain who is strengthened if and when Assad is weakened.”
Labour chief Jeremy Corbyn warned “more bombing, more killing, more war will not save lives, it will take lives and spawn the war elsewhere”.
He added: “Surely the lessons of Iraq, the lessons that came there from the Chilcot report, there has to be a proper process of consultation.”
Any UK military action would most likely involve Tomahawk cruise missiles launched from submarines in the Mediterranean and possibly air strikes from Tornado bombers.
But polling yesterday indicated only a fifth of voters believe Britain should get involved.
The YouGov poll for The Times found more than two fifths opposed strikes, with the remainder undecided.
America has deployed its Carrier Strike Force USS Harry Truman from Norfolk, Virginia, along with other warships. It has also repositioned bomber warplanes from its Pacific island of Guam. The French could also take part with Rafale and Mirage fighter bombers. Last night, Russia’s Ambassador to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, urged the US and allies to show restraint and said the “immediate priority is to avert the danger of war”. Asked if he was referring to a conflict between America and Russia, he told reporters: “We cannot exclude any possibilities unfortunately because we saw messages coming from Washington. They were very bellicose.”
Syria’s seven-year civil war has killed more than half a million people and displaced many millions more.
Assad has denied his regime was responsible for the attack in Douma and Russia has claimed the incident was fabricated by rebels.
Former British ambassador to Syria Peter Ford said he believed Assad was not responsible. He told the BBC: “He is probably not guilty on this occasion.
“We have to engage our brains as well as our emotions, not be stampeded by videos which are described as being unverified, but which by dint of being repeated over and over again come to acquire a spurious credibility.”
The feeling this time is Assad needs to be hit where he can feel it INTELLIGENCE SOURCE SPEAKING TO MIRROR