Syrian media report missile strike on airbase in Homs

The Syrian state news agency SANA reported a missile attack on the country on Monday morning, while USA officials are saying the military has not launched any strikes.

US President Donald Trump's top military commanders were on Sunday preparing a set of options for carrying out strikes against the Syrian government, senior military officials told i24NEWS, after a devastating toxic gas attack killed dozens.

Trump on Monday condemned the "heinous attack" in Syria and said he would make a decision on a USA response over the next 24 to 48 hours after huddling with military advisers.

According to the Syrian media, the country's air defenses had come face to face with a missile attack during which almost 8 missiles were shot down.

But Israeli officials said the Tiyas, or T-4, air base was being used by troops from Iran and that Israel would not accept such a presence in Syria by its arch foe. The Israeli planes were met with a barrage of missiles fired by Syria, one of which hit an F-16 jet that had a crew of two.

Fourteen people, including Iranians, were reported killed in the missile attack.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British-based monitor, said at least 14 people were killed including some fighters of various nationalities.

Trump said on Sunday there would be a "big price to pay" after medical aid groups reported dozens of civilians, including many children and women, were killed by poison gas in the besieged rebel-held town of Douma.

Further, President Trump spoke against the chemical attack launched by the Syrian government against civilians and blamed the president of Syria for having powers over Russian Federation and Iran.

"An aggression was perpetrated on T-4 air base in several strikes that is most likely to be an American attack", state television said in a news flash.

He even included Vladimir Putin, the Russian president in his rage against the chemical attacks on the civilians in Syria.

United Nations war crimes investigators had previously documented 33 chemical attacks in Syria, attributing 27 to the Assad government, which has repeatedly denied using the weapons.

File image of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.

Israel did not comment on Monday's missile strike.

Israeli opposition lawmaker Yair Lapid told Army Radio: "Israel will not accept an Iranian military presence in Syria and will not accept Iran's creeping entrenchment in Syria and this has costs".

As global officials worked to try to confirm the chemical attack, Trump took the rare step of directly criticizing Russian President Vladimir Putin in connection with the incident.

What kind of gas was used in the latest attack in Syria?

The Syrian opposition blamed the suspected chemical attack on Saturday in the town of Douma on government forces.

The U.N. Security Council planned to hold an emergency meeting Monday to discuss the chemical attack.

In response, the Trump administration ordered the the launch of a barrage of Tomahawk cruise missiles against a Syrian airbase, marking the first time the USA had directly targeted the Syrian regime since the start of the country's civil war in 2011.