U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer bombers fired 19 AGM-158 JASSM missiles at the Barzah Research and Development Center during the April 2018 U.S., UK, and French strikes in Syria.
| Claim | Sources |
|---|---|
| U.S. forces used 19 JASSMs during the April 2018 strike phase of the 2011 Syrian Civil War. | |
| The missiles were fired by two B-1/B-1B Lancer bombers. | |
| The JASSM target documented in official U.S. accounts was the Barzah Research and Development Center in the greater Damascus area. | Sources: DoD Syria Strike Briefing, Pentagon Syria Strikes Story |
Timeline
U.S. officials said the Douma chemical-weapons attack prompted the later U.S., UK, and French strikes against Syrian government chemical-weapons-related targets.
Sources: DoD Syria Strike Briefing, Pentagon Syria Strikes Story
U.S. officials said 19 JASSMs were fired by two B-1 Lancer bombers as part of the 76-missile strike on the Barzah Research and Development Center near Damascus.
The AGM-158 JASSM was used in the 2011 Syrian Civil War during the allied strike operation of April 13-14, 2018. In the Pentagon's post-strike briefing, Joint Staff Director Lt. Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr. said the Barzah Research and Development Center in the greater Damascus area was attacked with 76 missiles, including 19 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles.
The same briefing identified the launch platforms as two B-1 Lancer bombers that fired the 19 JASSMs. Air Force Global Strike Command later described the mission as the JASSM's first real-world combat employment and said two B-1B Lancers released 19 missiles during a combat mission to Barzah, Syria.
On April 7, 2018, U.S. officials said a chemical-weapons attack in Douma prompted the allied response. On April 13-14, U.S., British, and French forces struck three Syrian government chemical-weapons-related targets, including Barzah near Damascus and two Him Shinshar sites west of Homs.
During the Barzah portion of the strike, U.S. forces used 57 Tomahawk land-attack cruise missiles and 19 JASSMs. The Pentagon briefing said the weapons were delivered from British, French, and U.S. air and naval platforms, with the intended time on target around 4:00 a.m. in Syria.
Sources: DoD Syria Strike Briefing, Pentagon Syria Strikes Story
In this conflict record, JASSM appears as a U.S. long-range precision-strike weapon used in a one-night coalition operation rather than as a munition fielded by Syrian battlefield parties. The documented user was the U.S. Air Force, the aircraft were B-1B/B-1 Lancer bombers, and the supported target claim is limited to the Barzah Research and Development Center.
Official U.S. accounts framed the broader strike package as a response to Syrian government chemical-weapons use and reported 105 weapons used across three targets. The JASSM-specific evidence does not show transfer to another actor or repeated Syrian Civil War employment; it documents a single U.S. strike package in April 2018.
Sources: DoD Syria Strike Briefing, Pentagon Syria Strikes Story, Significant Firepower
