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U.S. Considered Launching Syria Strikes Three Times Bigger
(Wall Street Journal) Gordon Lubold and Dion Nissenbaum - In response to the deadly gas attack on civilians in Syria, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis presented the White House with three military options, according to people familiar with the decision-making. The most conservative option would have hit a narrow set of targets related to Syria's chemical-weapons capabilities. The second option proposed strikes on a broader set of Syrian regime targets, including suspected chemical-weapons research facilities and military command centers. The most expansive proposal, which might have included strikes on Russian air defenses in Syria, was designed to cripple the regime's military capabilities. It was three times the size of the one eventually carried out by U.S., British and French forces. Mr. Trump approved a hybrid plan that reflected a melding of the first two options.