Iran’s Shamkhani Slams US ‘Open Support’ for Terrorists in Syria

Speaking at a meeting with Speaker of the People’s Council of Syria Hadiya Khalaf Abbas in Tehran on Tuesday, Shamkhani said the US and some European countries should explain the link between their call for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council and the recent heavy defeats the terrorists have suffered in Syria.

“The main reason behind the failure of various political and diplomatic initiatives (to resolve Syrian crisis) and even the opportunities for ceasefire, is the West’s reluctance to admit the terrorist nature of many extremist armed groups (in Syria) and end supporting them,” he stressed.

The Syrian parliament speaker, for her part, expressed gratitude to Iran’s humanitarian and advisory assistance to Syria to counter terrorism and said if certain Arab countries had adopted a sincere approach to help resolve the crisis, as Iran did, one would have never witnessed such a critical situation in the region today.

Syria has been gripped by civil war since March 2011 with various terrorist groups, including ISIS, currently controlling parts of it.

According to a report by the Syrian Center for Policy Research, the conflict has claimed the lives of over 470,000 people, injured 1.9 million others, and displaced nearly half of the country’s pre-war population of about 23 million within or beyond its borders.

In the meantime, Iran has remained a close ally of Syria and supports its legitimate government in the face of foreign-backed militancy.

Tehran insists that the Syrian nation is the only side that has the right to shape the future of its own country, rejecting foreign intervention with the use of force.