US prevented imminent Syrian chemical weapon attack: Mattis

The regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad halted preparations for its latest chemical weapon attack after Washington warned Damascus that it would pay a heavy price for such a strike, American Defense Secretary James Mattis told reporters on Wednesday. Mattis did not elaborate on the actions taken by Syria at its Shayrat airbase, which was attacked by the US in April in retaliation for a Syrian chemical attack on civilians.