CURRENT AFFAIRS

Detailed explanation-1: -President Donald Trump announced the strikes at 9 pm EDT, 13 April (4 AM, 14 April in Syria, 2 AM in London, 3 AM in Paris) along with allies France and the United Kingdom. Explosions were heard in Damascus, the capital of Syria, just as Trump was speaking.

Detailed explanation-2: -Syria’s military says five people have died after what it alleged were Israeli missiles hit the capital Damascus and surrounding areas on Sunday. Officials said a building was hit in the central Kafr Sousa neighbourhood, killing four civilians and one soldier.

Detailed explanation-3: -The attack is the latest in a long-running shadow war between Israel and Iran that is playing out in Syria and throughout the Middle East. Since 2017, Israel has carried out more than 400 airstrikes in Syria targeting what it says are Iranian military assets and Tehran’s network of allied militias in the region.

Detailed explanation-4: -The strike was the first unilateral military action by the United States targeting the Syrian government during the Syrian Civil War. President Trump stated shortly thereafter, “It is in this vital national security interest of the United States to prevent and deter the spread and use of deadly chemical weapons."

Detailed explanation-5: -The last reported attack on Damascus was on Jan. 2, when the Syrian army reported that Israel’s military fired missiles toward the international airport of Syria’s capital early Monday, putting it out of service and killing two soldiers and wounding two others.