you're watching the news live from berlin the u.s. britain and france strike syria the joint strike targeted a legit chemical weapons facilities overnight syrian state television has released these images and put a board at least showing the destruction washington says it's a response to the suspected poison gas attack by president assad's forces last week . these are not the actions of a man they are crimes of a monster instead you have a president trump denouncing assad and now praising the u.s.

military for what he calls of perfectly executed attack tweeting mission accomplished. and residents take to the streets of damascus in a show of defiance as syria's president says the strikes will only increase has resulted while russia terrorism and every inch of the country. before vos and welcome to the program the united states and its allies britain and france have carried out air strikes on suspected chemical weapons facilities in syria u.s. president trump says they were in response to last week's alleged gas attack in the syrian town of duma which left dozens of civilians debt and began hitting targets in and around the cities of damascus and homs within minutes of his announcement.

he sells launched would syria from a u.s. navy ship part of a wave of strikes by the west backed by french and british forces. they were aiming to bomb targets related to syria's chemical weapons program in the capital damascus and in the western city of homs. syria state t.v. broadcast footage of the building it said was a research center hit by mr al the joint military action came a week after a gas attack on civilians which was thought to have been carried out by the forces of syrian president bashar al assad. we are prepared to sustain this response until the syrian regime stops its use of prohibited chemical agents i also have a message tonight for the two governments most responsible for supporting equipping and financing the criminal assad regime to iran and to

russia i ask what kind of a nation wants to be associated with the mass murder of innocent men women and children. this is the largest display of joint force by western nations against the assad regime and were significantly bigger than u.s. strikes on syria a year ago. said the best visit is objective this operation and targeted objectives belonging to the clandestine chemical program of syria the process the main and research center of this program and to important production science has been struck. through these targets we have here the capacity of syria to develop and to produce chemical weapons metal poor deploy desire machine siri get i don't. despite the

strikes britain's prime minister made it renewed calls for diplomacy. there is a wider question of the future political solution for syria and that is a matter that we will continue to pursue in diplomatic channels and diplomatic and political channels with our international partners and allies after the strikes some assad supporters hold noisy demonstrations of defiance in damascus meanwhile syria rebels fighting the assad regime in the western strikes were a fast as long as assad stayed in power. just a while ago i spoke to danny makki a british syrian freelance journalist and damascus i asked him to describe the moments when the airstrikes hit the city. but it was quite a lot at about four thirty in the morning a series of different strikes on areas within the camp the syrian capital damascus awoke me into work most of the residents of this of this capital city initially

around ten different rockets were landed within areas within the vicinity of the capital in eastern damascus and that is a research facility called bettas it where it's known to have had a history of of the related chemical weapons. program of production another strike this was a reported in a military airport and lastly the final area which was stark if there was a research facility and it's a huge complex of numerous buildings military academies aboard trees and that was in the western part of the city just a stone's throw away from the area which i'm currently based an initial the initial reaction from residents in damascus was one of panic of nobody knowing what was happening but as the one hour long barrage essential a finished many of these residents pro-government residents in particular took to the streets they went to a square which is in the center of damascus and began to stay dry nice in support

of the syrian government denouncing the u.s. attacks so the message from people in damascus is that life is continuing as normal is that these attacks really haven't broken our backs here that will continue to support our government and if you can see that the president he hates uploaded a photo a video in fact those of syrian president bashar al assad will going into work this morning at nine o'clock as per usual as if nothing had happened so there is a message from damascus that we will continue as normal and of normality but i can definitely tell you the one hour period of the bombardment which the damascus was subjected to there was a series of panic of panic within the city of people not really understanding what was happening and it took a while for the information to really see the pain. danny makki a british syrian freelance journalist in damascus speaking to me a short time ago now for more on the opposition reaction to these strikes let's cross over now to the rubble stronghold of her freelance journalist nor adam

standing by her thank you for joining us people and live now have been reacting to these western strikes let's take a listen to what they had to say. about this strike is like all the others before it they were fruitless there will be no results until they get rid of bashar al assad and the regime might mean if they don't get rid of them there will be no results these strikes will just encourage the regime. they struck suggest theatrical there and if they wanted to help us they would have done so at the beginning of the war either they give us a defense systems or they rid us of the head of the regime the criminal bashar al assad there is no hope. nor skepticism there about how effective these strikes will be in reining in the assad regime what have people there been telling you the people here are some of them have been some of them doesn't care because if

it's already graham and france and the united kingdom want to said and that if they had to get out from within and. they could take out syria i think out to russia from syria. people here have been and especially the people from is singled out because that last week we lost the more than fourteen. people killed by a chemical weapons and to my city and there were many attacks by quoting gas and dust so some of the. body is all sick but they are hoping to this. will continue until that i said we'll get out from the prison and get out from also and that and. they then we are can go to home and go to google but the americans have said that they're not necessarily going to intervene

in the crisis we're not looking for regime change britain has said that you are the people on the ground aware of this is this is technically just an attack on the chemical facilities actually a that is the way it's. used i mean we want. when we are to get out of from the for freedom in two thousand and eleven we want i said get out from syria but the when we all see america and the united kingdom says that they don't want to change and said regime actually that said this is bowing to us because that we hope. that whether they continue to intel assad will. exit from syria and we want to. be nor adam a freelance journalist and let's thank you for more on the story we go to washington now where d.w. bureau chief alexandra phenomena is standing by alexandra u.s.

president trump tweeted mission accomplished just a short while ago and the pentagon has been telling journalists they hit every target are they indicating that this is over because trump had said earlier that further possible strikes were possible. well in his remarks yesterday the president said that the u.s. is proposed for sustained response but he was referring not only to military measures but also through diplomatic and economic measures today as you say to set he tweeted mission accomplished indicating that that's it for now and that's what we heard from the pentagon as well the u.s. military leadership seems to be very pleased with the outcome of the earth of the earth strikes they say they are very confident that by hitting these three targets in syria they were able to set back assad's chemical weapons program for

years but they also had to admit today that there are still chemical weapons sites in syria ok a sense of achievement there let's just have a listen to the director of the joint staff of the pentagon on that mission a powerful unity we deploy one hundred five weapons against three targets that will significantly impact the syrian regime's ability to develop deploy and use chemical weapons in the future it's been said before but i want to emphasize again the by comparison the strike was double the size of the last strike unable to thousands seventeen and i'd also emphasize the destroy it was a multinational effort the precision strike was executed with france and the u.k. do multinational and. he's referring to a multinational effort there but right now it's being brought before the u.n. security council and we hear that to happen there i mean. well

i just suspect a heated debate and nothing more i have to say because the u.n. security council is deeply divided over syria it was russia that called on this for this emergency meeting of the u.n. security council and it's proposing a resolution that would condemn what the russians call aggression against syria and russia is accusing the you asked the u.k. and its friends of violating. the u.n. and charger however i would expect the united states friends and to the u.k. to use their veto powers spellman and members to block any resolution d.w. bureau chief alexander phenomena in washington thank you now in a statement defending her country's role in the military operation british prime minister tourism

a called the strikes of right and legal she also had sharp words for russia saying it was moscow's refusal to hold syria accountable that made the strikes necessary and on each occasion when we have seen every sign of chemical weapons being used any attempt to hold the purpose it has to account has been blocked by russia the un security council with six such vetoes since the start of two thousand and seventeen just this week the russians vetoed a draft resolution that would have established an independent investigation into this latest attack even making the grotesque and absurd claim that it was staged by person so we have no choice but to conclude that diplomatic action will not be any more effective in the future than it has been in the past. let's have a closer look at the british involvement in these strikes in syria for that we're joined by correspondent kitty logan in london kitty we just heard trees amaze say

that there was no diplomatic option that force was necessary to go to parliament for approval but does she have the support from within the united kingdom for this type of military intervention that is still being debated in that very point has been raised by leader of the opposition labor party chairman call that he has written a letter to the prime minister on the legality of the strikes which britain took part in all six he sent very strongly but jamie colvin arguing today that it should have perhaps gone to parliament this should have been a vote and other opposition politicians also coming forward with treason they will address the house of commons parliament on monday but until then there are so many questions being raised about that legal question he britain also insists this isn't about regime change in syria but rather they're sending a message against the use of chemical weapons this may did link her decision to join the airstrikes to the southbury incident from last month and. that's right now

of course russian british relations are at an all time low since that incident in soulsby i believe any chemical noting that the government here says came from russia and of course trees in may today was adamant that it was a signal that chemical weapons the use of chemical weapons could not be tolerated anywhere and there are some observers who say it's because there have been so many alleged uses of chemical weapons in syria that perhaps the rest of the world including russia has thought that a green light to tuesday's kind of weapons elsewhere the gun but here is saying we won't tolerate that we're going to make a stronger stand and yes a lot of people saying here that those.