Firing a ‘warning shot’ against Syria is the only military option being considered by the Government after defence chiefs warned the UK could get sucked into a fresh conflict.
Senior officials say plans have been drawn up for a precision air strike or missile attack to force dictator Bashar al-Assad to the negotiating table.
But the Chief of the Defence Staff, General Sir David Richards, has told David Cameron that imposing a no-fly zone over Syria or creating a safe haven for humanitarian workers would court disaster.
Senior officials say plans have been made for a precision missile attack to force dictator Bashar al-Assad (pictured) into negotiations
The Prime Minister condemned an apparent nerve gas attack on civilians in Syria last week as a ‘war crime’ and warned that the Assad regime had crossed a ‘red line’. Senior government sources say Mr Cameron has been persuaded that ‘only a political solution’ can resolve the conflict.
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But he is prepared to contemplate limited military action to kickstart a political effort to end the war.
He and the Obama administration hope the discovery of chemical weapons will convince Russia to pressure Assad to discuss a transition of power.
Insiders say that if that does not work some limited military action is possible.
The Prime Minister David Cameron condemned an apparent nerve gas attack on civilians last week
A senior Whitehall source said: ‘Something you might do is to send a warning shot which doesn’t move you into all-out war. That would put more pressure on Assad to come to the table.’ Sources say a limited one-off strike is the only realistic military option likely to take place. More extensive contingency plans for a no-fly zone or safe havens – shown to Mr Cameron ‘several months ago’ – have been sidelined
General Richards and his fellow chiefs warned that both would be very dangerous, since the Syrian military has high-quality air defences.
÷A fresh row has broken out over Britain’s use of armed drones in Afghanistan after it emerged the machines carry out one attack a week. Since October 2007 the unmanned vehicles have fired 350 Hellfire missiles or laser-guided bombs. Military chiefs said missions against the Taliban are being ‘piloted’ by airmen 4,000 miles away at RAF Waddington, in Lincolnshire.