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White House warns Syria of US response to ‘barrel bomb’ use

Bloomberg Published on Tue, Apr 11, 2017 / 8:14 AM GMT+8

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WASHINGTON (April 11): The White House press secretary warned Syria to stop using barrel bombs against civilians, suggesting President Donald Trump may expand the criteria for US action against Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

“If you gas a baby, if you put a barrel bomb into innocent people, I think you can -- you will see a response from this president,” Sean Spicer told reporters at his daily briefing on Monday. “That is unacceptable.”

Trump ordered a missile attack last week on a Syrian airbase, citing Syria’s use of chemical weapons. Because Assad’s forces depend more heavily on barrel bombs in quelling opposition in the civil war, the stance increases the likelihood of additional US intervention in Syria.