For residents of Syria's capital, the attack packed a jolt but didn't shake their resolve

Hundreds of residents gathered at major squares in the Damascus and other cities Saturday, waving flags, honking car horns and dancing in public shows of defiance as the government and its allies brushed off a barrage of missile strikes intended to punish President Bashar Assad for an alleged poison gas attack against civilians.

Syria, Russia and Iran denounced the predawn attack against facilities linked to Syria's chemical weapons program as an "act of aggression" and lambasted the United States, France and the United Kingdom for not waiting for international weapons inspectors to visit the site