Syria rebels warn that two-day missile assault is not enough Gen Shallan said the dispersal of its weapons, aircraft and key military units made the case of a longer campaign compelling. "The Syrian regime is aware of the potential impact of missile strikes and they had been dispersing headquarters to new sites, command-and-control units are being moved and weapons are being camouflaged at new locations," he said. President Barack Obama appeared to rule out a drawn-out bombing campaign in overnight remarks in which he said a "limited" action would signal Damascus had "better not do it again." Since the gas attack on the Damascus suburb last week killed at least 350 residents of rebel-held areas, Western commanders have stressed the assault will not cripple President Assad's armed forces. Gen Shallan's defection last December was celebrated by Western diplomats as a coup for the effort to bring down President Assad. The veteran staff officer had been head of the military police and in charge of preventing defections until he escaped across the Turkish border. He has since joined the opposition and works alongside Gen Selim Idris, the head of the FSA's military council, coordinating efforts to run the rebel army. A second senior FSA official based in Jordan said the rebel command had provided specific information on key targets to their US allies. Gen Asad Zoubi, a former air force commander, said a several stage attack would be directed at military bases and command centres. "The important places that will be attacked include the significant weapons depots, the headquarters of top military units, missile launch sites, the runways of military airports and the air defences," he said. The predicted scope of the operation could not put chemical weapons stockpiles beyond use without boots on the ground. "If these weapons are going to be taken out properly there should be commando operations to secure the chemical weapons," he said. Gen Zoubi, however, warned against mission creep that could see the intervention widened to depose the Assad regime. "The attacks will start off with the objective of deterring Assad but depending on the outcome of the first rounds there will be more and more pressure to destroy the regime," he said. However this is the hunger of the Syrian people and must imposed by the people's own hands. Otherwise it will have been imposed by the Americans.