Ground Assad News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

>> sir, does assad have to go? >> assad's role in the future is uncertain clearly, and with the acts he has taken, it would seem there is no role for him to govern the syrian people. >> will you and president trump organize an international coalition to remove assad? >> those steps are under way. >> reporter: but it was just one week ago, the secretary of state suggested something far different, saying the syrian people should decide whether to get rid of assad. this shift comes just 24 hours after the president, with the world watching, said those images of children gassed had changed his min...

Abc's chief global affairs correspondent martha raddatz leading us off. >> reporter: tonight, president trump, with his strongest words yet on the crisis in syria. as this president, now 77 days into his presidency, decides whether to take military action. >> i think what assad did is terrible. i think what happened in syria is one of the truly egregious crimes. and it shouldn't have happened. and it shouldn't be allowed to happen. >> have you talked to the russian president about what happened? >> at some point i may. i haven't, but at some point i may. >> do you think that assad should leave...

Repeatedly tweeting about it. back in 2013, after a chemical weapons attack, when president obama was weighing military action, trump tweeting, "do not attack syria. if you do, many bad things will happen. and from that fight, the u.s. gets nothing!" tonight, he is signaling his stance has changed. and the russians, who have been supporting syrian leader bashar al assad, said today support for assad not unconditional, but urging caution. on capitol hill, a leading republican said this is a test for trump. >> president trump has to make a decision that's going to define his presidency one way o...

Correspondent richard engel is standing by in london. he joins us from there. richard, this is one of those, there seem to be two clashing instincts in this country. everybody, of course, horrified by the stories of the chemical gas attack by the human cost of that, the instinct to do something. balanced with the memory of how horrified we were by saddam hussein, his treatment of his own people, his gassing of his own people. of course, the long-term consequences of the invasion in iraq in 2003. the idea was floated there by john mccain in the clip we just played. he said ground assad's air fo...