Damascus, April 7 (RHC)-- Syrian President Bashar Assad's office has strongly condemned the U.S. missile attack against a military airfield in the country’s central province of Homs, describing it as “reckless and irresponsible behavior.”

The statement pointed out that the assault showed Washington is “naively pulled behind a false propaganda campaign” -- a reference to accusations that Damascus was responsible for a suspected chemical incident in the town of Khan Shaykhun, which Syria strongly rejected.

The statement from the Syrian presidential office further noted that the U.S. missile attack had boosted the Syrian government’s resolve to crush foreign-sponsored Takfiri terrorist groups, vowing to expedite the pace of clean-up operations against the extremists.

At least nine people were killed in the early morning strike, according to Syria’s official news agency, SANA.  Syria has denounced the U.S. “aggression” as a violation of the international law.

Meanwhile, Syria's Foreign Ministry condemned the US strike as "a flagrant aggression" against the Arab country, and said Washington’s real objective was to "weaken the strength of the Syrian army in confronting terrorist groups."

In a Friday statement, the ministry described the Khan Shaykhun attack as a "premeditated action that aimed to justify the launching of a U.S. attack on the Syrian army."