Syria-Iran-Russia Joint Operations Room Warns of Crushing Response to Any Further US Attack

Rasa - The Syria-Iran-Russia joint operations room in charge of war strategy and coordination in Syria warned in a statement issued on Sunday that any fresh aggression by Washington against Syria will be given a lethal response.

News ID: 428795

Date: 09 April 2017 - 22:58

RNA - "We will respond to any aggression powerfully, as Russia and Iran would never allow the US to dominate the world," the statement said on Sunday.

Describing the recent US missile strike on an airbase in Syria's Homs province as yet "another miscalculation" by Washington, the statement said, "We believe that the events (chemical weaopns use) in Khan Sheikhoun have been plotted by certain states and bodies to be used as a pretext to attack Syria."

The statement stressed that supporters and trainers of the terrorist groups, including the ISIL and al-Nusra Front (also known as Fatah al-Sham Front or the Levant Liberation Board) are not entitled to introduce themselves as advocates of human rights, and blasted the US for its disrespect for the UN members through its unilateral move against Syria before any official investigation into the chemical incident in Idlib.

Elsewhere, the allies of Syria underscored that "we are not unaware of what the US seeks to be materialized in Northern Syria and Northwestern Iraq".

In relevant remarks on Sunday morning, Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Ali Shamkhani underlined that the result of investigations by a fact-finding committee on the chemical attack in Syria will bring another disgrace for the US which attacked the country before any probe.

"In case an international fact-finding committee is set up and the realities behind the issue (chemical attack against Idlib) are studied, another scandal will be registered in the US record of international security violations," Shamkhani said in a phone conversation with Director of the Syrian National Security Bureau General Ali Mamlouk.

He reiterated Tehran's continued support for the Syrian government and people's fight against terrorists, and said the US missile strike against a Syrian airbase in Homs province was an attempt to boost the terrorists' morale.

Shamkhani also underscored that Iran, Russia and Syria are strongly determined to cooperate in the fight against terrorism.

Mamlouk, for his part, appreciated Iran for its supports and aids, and stressed the Syrian government, nation and armed forces' resistance against the terrorist groups and their advocates.

The phone conversation was made one day after Shamkhani and his Russian counterpart Nikolai Patrushev exchanged views on Washington's missile attack on Syria.

During the phone conversation on Saturday, Shamkhani underlined the necessity for the formation of a fact-finding committee to clarify the aspects of the suspicious chemical attack in Idlib, and said given the fact that Syria has been disarmed of chemical weapons in the past, the attack has been definitely launched by a third party to create a pretext for military aggression against Syria.

He also warned of impacts of the US aggressive and illegal moves in the region, and said, "Such measures boost the terrorists' morale and disrupt the trend of war on terrorism which is pursued through cooperation among the Russian, Syrian and Iranian governments under the UN supervision."

Yet, Shamkhani underscored that the decisive battle and suppression of terrorist streams will continue through strategic cooperation among Iran, Syria, Russia and the resistance front.

Patrushev, for his part, condemned the US missile strike against Syria as a sovereign state, describing it as an aid to the terrorists and against the international laws.

On Thursday night, the United States launched 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles at the Syrian military airfield in al-Shayrat, located about 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the city of Homs. US President Donald Trump said the attack was a response to the alleged chemical weapon use in Syria's Idlib on Tuesday, which Washington blames on the Syrian government.

Russia described the attack as an aggression against a sovereign state. Following the US military action, Russia decided to suspend its memorandum of understanding on air safety over Syria with the United States, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry.

Syrian opposition claimed Tuesday forces loyal to President Bashar Assad had used a chemical gas on people in the Northwestern province, killing nearly 80 and injuring 200. Assad argued his government has no chemical weapons after agreeing to have them destroyed in 2013. He also ruled out having used chemicals against own people.

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