One senior U.S. official familiar with the decision to act on Friday said the U.S., British and French intelligence services were unanimous in their assessments of the attack and were "eager" to move when they did because of concerns about contamination of the site. Together we have sent a clear message to Assad and his murderous lieutenants that they should not perpetrate another chemical weapons attack for which they will be held accountable.”

Director of the Joint Staff Lt. Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr. called the attacks “precise, overwhelming and effective” in their goal to prevent further chemical weapons attacks. "British Prime Minister Theresa May describes the attack as neither "about intervening in a civil war" nor "about regime change" but a limited and targeted strike that "does not further escalate tensions in the region" and does everything possible to prevent civilian casualties. The three countries launched their missiles even as the fact-finding team from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons was in the Syrian capital and had been expected to head on Saturday to Douma. “They are about how much [the U.S. is] allowed to act unrestrained and how much does he want to demonstrate that he can fight back.”

The strike also raises thorny questions for Trump administration officials about why they are willing to intervene when Assad uses chemical weapons against civilians but won’t act in instances where his forces are killing far more with conventional weapons.
The United States, France, and the United Kingdom target chemical weapon sites and other Syrian military sites with missile strikes on early Saturday morning Syrian time (EET), in response to the Douma chemical attack.