President Bashar al-Assad has censured Turkey over sending a military convoy to Syria’s embattled northwestern province of Idlib, stressing that the move clearly shows that the Ankara government is offering generous support to Takfiri terrorists who have lost ground amid government forces’ push to retake the last militant-held area in the country. RNA - Speaking in a meeting with a visiting Russian delegation from the ruling United Russia political party in Damascus on Tuesday, Assad said the recent developments in Idlib point to Turkey’s clear and unlimited support for the foreign-sponsored extremists.
He added that Syrian army troopers have, nevertheless, succeeded to score victories against terrorists, particularly in Idlib, irrespective of support provided by Western and regional countries to them.
Assad stressed that the territorial gains prove the determination of the Syrian nation and army to continue fighting terrorism until every inch of the Syrian soil is liberated.
Dmitry Sablin, for his part, expressed confidence that the incumbent Damascus government will eventually manage to restore security and stability across Syria.
Sablin added that he has recently toured a number of Syrian provinces, finding life returning to normal more than eight years after the start of Syria crisis.
On Monday, Syria’s official news agency, SANA, quoting an unnamed source in the Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, denouncing Turkey's move as an act of “aggression.”
Syria strongly condemns passage of Turkish vehicles loaded with ammunition through borders and their heading towards Khan Sheikhoun to help defeated terrorists https://t.co/qKkqrt4tN5pic.twitter.com/55llJm6Y4o
— SANAEnglishOfficial (@SANAEnOfficial) August 19, 2019
The source added that the Turkish convoy would not affect “the determination of the Syrian Arab Army to keep hunting the remnants of terrorists” in the town Khan Shaykhoun or elsewhere.
The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) and local sources reported on Tuesday that militants had pulled out of Khan Shaykhun in the southern part of Idlib province and a nearby area in neighboring Hama province.
The withdrawal came after Syrian army troops and their allied fighters managed to enter Khan Shaykhun, which had been occupied by foreign-backed terrorists since 2014.
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