Updated: Washington Post: Military Has Doubts About Syria Strike

The U.S. military is hesitant to embrace President Barack Obama's plan to launch a missile strike on Syria, current and former officers revealed in interviews.

Military officers ranging from captains to four-star generals said they are uneasy about a potential Syrian missile strike because it could have unintended consequences, such as turning attention away from their exit from Afghanistan, the Washington Post reported.

"I can't believe the president is even considering it," a young Army officer, who is wrapping up a yearlong tour overseas, told the Post under the condition of anonymity. "We have been fighting the last 10 years a counterinsurgency war. Syria has modern weaponry. We would have to retrain for a conventional war."

Some military officials worry about retaliation from the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which supports Syrian President Bashar Assad, while others fear ripple effects that could include Iran following through on its threat to attack Israel, retaliation from radical groups, or the U.S. being charged with war crimes.

"The application of force rarely produces and, in fact, maybe never produces the outcome we seek," Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in an interview with ABC News earlier this month.

Active-duty military leaders said they feel strongly that a strike in Syria would serve no purpose for the U.S. Keep reading

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The US needs to consider the long range consequences of even limited military strikes against Syria to the stability of the region. Of particular concern should be how these strikes would affect the region's Christian communities and advance the cause of Islamist extremists in the region.