Tehran: Iran said Friday that it ‘strongly condemns’ a US air strike on a Syrian government airbase in retaliation for a suspected chemical weapons attack on a rebel-held town.

‘We condemn all unilateral military action and the missile strike by US warships against Shayrat airbase under the pretext of Tuesday’s suspected attack on Khan Sheikhun,’ foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Ghassemi told the Fars news agency.

Iran with Russia is the closest ally of the regime of President Bashar al-Assad and has provided money, weapons, military advisers and trainers, as well as volunteer militiamen to support it in the six-year civil war.