U.S. Air Strikes in Syria

On the morning of September 23, 2014, the US and a coalition of Arab dictatorships started to bomb targets inside Syria.



Legal Basis
Domestically the Obama administration claims its strikes in Syria are covered by 2001 laws allowing the president to strike people involved in the September 11 attacks. Internationally, they represented to the UN Security Council a justification of legitimate self-defense. Ambassador to the UN Samantha Power offered the explanation "'States must be able to defend themselves' when 'the government of the state where the threat is located is unwilling or unable to prevent the use of its territory for such attacks'"

It is unclear whether USA even attempted to get a UN authorization. Ms. Samantha Power,  US Ambassador to the UN, gave an interview to ABC on that matter, Obama needs no U.N. approval to order airstrikes in Syria.  USA may gotten some cold shoulder at UN from Russia   (which modeled its Ukraine activities on previous USA activities in Libya and Syria, and was unhappy with sanctions as follow-up),   However, it is not known that  UN resolution would fail; what is known is that there were Lavrov-Kerry contacts, and Putin conversation with Ban Ki Moon, shortly before  US-lead air strikes in Syria commenced. Drawback of not having UN authorization is that next time around, somebody else may try to do the same, and  possibly in less justified circumstances.

UN: This year speech of President Obama is different in content from the speech last year. But nevertheless, Russia will support United Nations Security Council resolution on terrorists and foreign mercenaries, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov said on Wednesday.

May 1, Sarrin or Birmahle
Reports came in from the SOHR and others of a US-led coalition airstrike that killed dozens of civilians in Aleppo province. Reports vary, growing, from more than 20 to a widely-reported 52 ABC news report mentions rebels also fired a rocket attack on regime supporting civilians, perhaps, to avenge the supposed regime assassination of one of their commanders, "Badr Khaled Siraj, who is better known as Khaled Hayyani," SOHR's director Rami Abdelrahman said. This is troubling, coinciding with an air strike killing more civilians we know nothing about, at the same time. Consider, someone called these targets in. And Hayyani was known for - and criticized by the SOHR for - shelling civilian targets in government-held areas (example report, February). Hayyani is also referred to as the inventor of the "Hell Cannon" by pro-government sources (example report) The latest attack(s) could be an answer to the supposed elimination of a threat to government-secured civilians - that killing Hayyani won't stop the shelling, just cause more. It could be a sort of tribute to him.

ABC citing SOHR's Abdelrahman puts the coalition strike in "Birmahle," and the rocket attack on a village somewhere in Aleppo. "Ein Arab: Srain" is the site where VDC records say '71 civilians were killed in coalition bombing, May 1. "Srain" probably means Sarrin on Wikimapia, due south of Ain Arab aka Kobane and just behind the Aleppo border. Birmahle might refer to the town just south of that, Malhah (Bir-Malhah). Both are on the Euphrates river in Aleppo Province, as all reports say.

However there seem to be no further details available on the government-claimed attack. An Aleppo rebel shelling with 12 then 13 dead happened in late March, but not yet reported for May, that's easily found. The VDC lists no non-warplane shelling deaths in Aleppo so far in May: "regime" and coalition aerial bombing is all they report killing people. ([http://www.vdc-sy.info/index.php/en/martyrs/1/c29ydGJ5PWEua2lsbGVkX2RhdGV8c29ydGRpcj1ERVNDfGFwcHJvdmVkPXZpc2libGV8ZXh0cmFkaXNwbGF5PTB8cHJvdmluY2U9Nnxjb2RNdWx0aT0yfHN0YXJ0RGF0ZT0yMDE1LTA0LTAzfGVuZERhdGU9MjAxNS0wNS0wM3w= month of April 3 to May 3 - to Aril 30 rocket and artillery shelling deaths are listed, most clearly blamed on the government, others just "shelling")

The Guardian reports the United States will look into the claims.