Assad:

West intervenes in favor of terrorists whenever army advances

Rasa - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has accused the West of interfering in Syria’s affairs in favor of terrorists whenever the army makes gains, citing Washington’s missile attack on a Syrian military airbase earlier this month as an example.

News ID: 429142

Date: 23 April 2017 - 23:33

RNA - Assad made the remarks in an address to a meeting of the central committee of Syria’s ruling Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party in Damascus on Saturday, Syria’s official SANA news agency reported. He is the regional secretary of the party.

The Syrian head of state said that the April 7 US missile strike against Shayrat Airfield in Homs Province came after terrorists’ defeat in the west-central Hama Province and the army’s advance in the country’s north and east.

“Western states with the United States at their head interfere in favor of the terrorists whenever the Syrian Arab Army makes a significant advance,” Assad added.

The Saudi-inspired Wahhabi terrorism and countries hostile to Syria have used all their means in the war, he pointed out.

President Assad further stressed that the battle between Syria and extremist currents is not a new thing, but rather dates back to the 60s of the 20th century.

The Syrian war on terrorism would not stop as long as terrorists remain in the Arab country, he noted.

Syria will continue to confront Western scenarios seeking to undermine its unity and sovereignty and pursue a political path through participation in peace talks in the Swiss city of Geneva and the Kazakh capital Astana, to stop the bloodshed gripping the Arab country, Assad concluded.

Washington claimed that Shayrat Airfield had been used to conduct what it said was a chemical attack on the town of Khan Shaykhun in Syria’s Idlib Province on April 4. Over 80 people were reportedly killed in the town due to the attack.

The West held Damascus responsible for the suspected gas attack, but Syria denied the accusation and stressed that the incident was a "fabrication" to justify the subsequent US missile strike on the airbase.

Since March 2011, Syria has been gripped by militancy it blames on some Western states and their regional allies that have long pushed for the ouster of the Damascus government.

Over the past few months, Syrian forces have made sweeping gains against Takfiri elements who have increased their acts of violence across the country following a series of defeats on the ground.

847/940