Russia calls emergency session of UN Security Council

Russia on Saturday confirmed that it was calling an mergency session of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in the wake of the airstrikes launched by the US-led coalition in Syria.

"Russia will convene an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss the aggressive actions by the US and its allies," the Kremlin, said, in a statement.

"On April 14, the United States, supported by its allies, launched an airstrike against military and civilian targets in the Syrian Arab Republic. An act of aggression against a sovereign state that is on the frontline in the fight against terrorism was committed without a mandate from the UN Security Council and in violation of the UN Charter and norms and principles of international law, the statement added.

Russia has condemned "in the strongest possible terms" the attack against Syria, where Russian military personnel are assisting the legitimate government in its counterterrorism efforts.

The statement comes in the aftermath of the air strikes launched by the United States, France and Britain, targeting sites associated with the country's chemical weapons capabilities.

United States President Donald Trump, in an address, announced that he ordered precision strikes in Syria in retaliation for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's chemical attack on Syria's rebel-held town of Douma in Eastern Ghouta on April 7.

"I ordered the United States armed forces to launch precision strikes on targets associated with the chemical weapon capabilities of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad," CNN reported, Trump as saying at the White House.

On April 7, at least 40 people were killed in the attack on Syria's rebel-held town of Douma in Eastern Ghouta according to volunteer first responders and activists.