weijian, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, anne-marie. for years as a citizen and then on the came pain trail president trump insisted we should stay out of syria but he was moved by the country's most recent chemical attack and said it happened when he saw images of i i innocent children who were killed. last night u.s. missile strikes took direct aim at syrian leader ba shash al assad. >> tonight i orted a targeted military strike on the airfield in syria from where the chemical attack was launched. >> reporter: two u.s. navy warships in the mediterranean sea fired a total of 59 tomahawk missiles aimed at this air base in central syria. >> it is in this vital national security interest of the united states to prevent and deter the spread and use of chemical weapons. >> reporter: in an impromptu press conference secretary of state rex tillerson told reporters that president trump made the decision to strike thursday. >> it does demonstrate that president trump is willing to act when governments and actors cross the line. >> reporter: a u