Following an alleged chemical attack by the Syrian government against its own people on last Wednesday, the United States military turned to fiery rhetoric in preparation for what may well be a military strike later this week.
"We know that the Syrian regime are the only ones who have the weapons, have used chemical weapons multiple times in the past, have the means of delivering those weapons, have been determined to wipe out exactly the places that were attacked by chemical weapons," Biden said to a conference in Houston, according to CBS News.
"What we saw in Syria last week should shock the conscience of the world. It defies any code of morality," said Secretery of State John Kerry at a news conference on Monday, according to BBC News.
As CNN notes, the U.S. has a contentious relationship with chemical weapons, with some seeing little difference between chemical warfare and conventional warfare. Chemical weapons first rose to prominence in World War I, causing more than 100,000 casualties, many from mustard gas. The Geneva Protocol of 1925 branded the use of the weapons a war crime, and in 1992 the Chemical Weapons Convention called for the prohibition of the weapons altogether.
"We want to establish the parameters of warfare. If you don't, combatants will keep pressing the boundaries. Ultimately, the question is, should we have any boundaries in war or not?" said Michael Rubin, a former Pentagon official.
The Arab League has officially backed the United States in their planned strike on Syria, an integral diplomatic hurdle for the United States as they attempt to cajole multilateral cooperation in their war efforts. According to the Miami Herald, military commanders are planning to launch a sea-based strike from the Mediterranean. The goal of the United States military is to "punish, not remove" Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad.
According to United Nations estimates, over 100,000 people have been killed in the Syrian civil war since the conflict began two and half years ago.
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