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Everything you need to know about Donald Trump's Tomahawk strikes in Syria

A Tomahawk missile fired by the USS Porter - AFP
A Tomahawk missile fired by the USS Porter - AFP

President Donald Trump’s response to the Syrian regime’s use of chemical weapons was swift and decisive.

Less than 72 hours after the horrific gas attack in Idlib, Mr Trump took action, targeting the Shayrat air base in central Syria with 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles.

According to US officials Mr Trump acted from his gut after seeing horrific pictures of child victims in Idlib.

The signal was unmistakable – if he finds something unacceptable, anywhere in the world, he will not hesitate to use force.

missile - Credit: AFP
A Tomahawk missile fired by the USS Porter Credit: AFP

Preparing the ground for the strike

The airstrikes happened less than an hour after Mr Trump finished dinner with the Chinese president Xi Jinping at Mar-a-Lago, his private club in Florida.

Beforehand the Pentagon gave a heads up to the Russian military using a “deconfliction” channel which had previously been established to avoid the two nations’ forces in the area firing on each other.

It was a priority for the US to avoid hitting any Russian military personnel or planes, which would risk an escalation.

However, the deconfliction move may have led to Russia alerting Syria, and the scrambling of jets from Shayrat.

Shayrat - Credit: DigitalGlobe
Satellite image of Shayrat airfield Credit: DigitalGlobe

Picking the target

Shayrat had been identified by US intelligence as the launching point for the jets that dropped sarin gas on civilians in Idlib.

According to Lieutenant Colonel Rick Francona, former US military attache to Syria, who has been to the base, it was “bare bones” and home to two air squadrons.

There are two runways, hardened shelters for the planes, and an administrative area. Only a few small towns are nearby, meaning the prospect of civilian casualties was low.

Syrian control and airforce capabilities

Each missile was programmed with a specific target and that included the control tower, the hard top hangars, fuel stations for the planes, ammunition dumps, air defence systems, and radar installations.

Before 2013 the base was used to store chemical weapons but nothing was targeted that could have contained them now.

It was believed there may have been sarin gas stored in one warehouse but that was avoided.

There were no Russian planes at the airfield.

missile - Credit: AFP
USS Ross fires a missile Credit: AFP

The strike

Missiles began hitting Shayrat at 3.45am local time, which was part of an effort to avoid casualties by striking in the middle of the night.

The 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles guided by satellite and they continued landing for between three and four minutes.

A Syrian military official said there had been “losses”.

Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis said: “Initial indications are that this strike has severely damaged or destroyed Syrian aircraft and support infrastructure and equipment, reducing the Syrian government’s ability to deliver chemical weapons.”

Video released by the Pentagon showed the missiles being launched from two US Navy destroyers, the USS Ross and USS Porter, in the eastern Mediterranean.

The video itself, endlessly replayed on a loop on US cable television, was intended to send a clear signal about the might of the US military.

Trump - Credit: AP
Donald Trump with Xi Jinping at Mar-a-Lago Credit: AP

Why use Tomahawks?

Tomahawks usually carry a 1,000-pound warhead and can be used to hit targets 1,000 miles away.

They were used Gulf War in 1991. Last September 47 were launched against an al-Qaeda linked group in Syria.

Launching Tomahawks from ships was preferable for several reasons. Using planes to bomb Shayrat risked losing pilots.

And the closest airbase the US could have used, Incirlik, would have needed backing from Turkey.

If it needs to use planes in future the US does have Harriers based on ships in the Mediterranean and the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush is in the Persian Gulf.