Iran throws its support behind Assad as rebels expand their shock offensive in Syria
Iran has thrown its support behind Syria's government after thousands of insurgents took control of the country's largest city of Aleppo.
BEIRUT — Iran has thrown its support behind Syria's government after thousands of insurgents took control of the country's second-largest city of Aleppo and seized nearby towns and villages in a swift and surprise offensive.
“We firmly support the Syrian army and government,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was quoted as saying by the state-run IRNA news agency, before he set off for Syria’s capital Damascus on Sunday. “The Syrian army will once again be victorious over these terrorist groups as in the past,” he added.
His comments came after the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a London-based war monitor, reported that insurgents led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) had seized control of Aleppo International Airport.
The Observatory said that fighters from the group posted pictures from the airport that would mean it’s the first international airport to be controlled by insurgents. The rebels now control “the majority of” Aleppo after forcing the governor, police and security branches to retreat from the city center, it added.
Russian and Syrian jets responded by striking the rebel-held city of Idlib on Sunday, according to the Observatory and the Syrian state-run news network Al-Ikhbariyah, in a second day of intensive bombing aimed at pushing back the insurgents.
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