“The Syrian army will once again be victorious over these terrorist groups as in the past,” he added.
In his first public comments released by the state news agency Saturday evening, Assad said Syria will continue to "defend its stability and territorial integrity against terrorists and their supporters."
Iran’s support for Assad mirrors that of Russia, which helped to turn the tide of the war during 2016's battle for Aleppo between Syrian government forces and rebel fighters.
The victory helped Assad to secure Assad's hold on strategic areas of Syria, with opposition factions and their foreign backers controlling areas on the periphery.
The U.S., for its part, opposes Assad, opposes Russia, and opposes Iran, but has allied itself with Syrian Kurdish forces despite their fight against U.S.’ NATO allies Turkey.
Persons:
”, Abbas Aragchi, “, Hayat Tahrir, Sham, Bashar Assad's, Assad, Iran’s, BAKR
Organizations:
Human Rights, Fighters, Getty, Kurdistan Workers ’ Party, U.S, NATO, Humanitarian Affairs
Locations:
Iran, Aleppo, Syria’s, Damascus, London, Syria, Hama, U.S, Turkey, Tehran, Lebanon, Russia, AFP, Tartus, Kurdish, Ankara, Syrian Kurdish, The U.S, Sham