Syrian chemical attack survivor to Trump: I want to 'buy you a beer'

By Clare Foran, CNN

(CNN) -- A survivor of a Syrian chemical attack in 2013 wants to buy President Donald Trump a beer to share his experience on the conditions in the country.

Kassem Eid, who told CNN's Ana Cabrera he lived under two years of siege and bombardment by the Syrian government, said he was glad the President has attempted to do something for the Syrian people.

"I just want to tell Mr. Trump directly: I'm a Syrian refugee who survived chemical weapons attacks, who lived under two years of siege and bombardment by the government," Eid said. "I would love to, like, buy you a beer, and just sit in front of you and tell you how bad it is in Syria."

Eid also said he would tell Trump, that he "proved once again, yesterday, that you have a big heart. At least a lot more bigger than Obama because you actually tried to do something. We need real, long-term commitment to bring peace to Syria."

The United States, along with the United Kingdom and France, launched coordinated air strikes Friday evening on Syria's chemical weapons capabilities in response to an alleged chemical attack. In a speech announcing the attack, Trump blamed the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

On Saturday, Trump called the strike "perfectly executed," on Twitter, writing, "mission accomplished!"

The Syrian government has denied involvement in the chemical attack.

In August 2013, then-President Barack Obama said the US had determined that Syria had launched a chemical weapons attack targeting its own people. Obama opted to seek congressional approval over the use of military force in Syria. But as CNN has reported, "when Obama considered launching airstrikes in Syria against 2013, he decided to go to Congress before striking, and the resistance he faced there convinced the president not to hit Assad."

In 2014, Obama did announce a series of airstrikes against what the president described as "ISIL targets in Syria," using an alternate term for the terrorist group more commonly known as ISIS.

Trump launched a military strike against the Syrian regime nearly one year ago targeting a government airbase also in response to a chemical weapons attack that killed civilians.

The-CNN-Wire

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