DAMASCUS, Syria, Aug 21 (NNN-SANA) – Syrian President, Bashar al-Assad, hailed the recent military victories achieved in the country’s northwestern province of Idlib, accusing Turkey of supporting the rebels in that region.
Assad made the remarks during his meeting with a delegation of the Unified Russia party, headed by Russian State Duma member, Dmitry Sablin.
During the meeting, the Syrian president stressed that, the victories achieved in the war on terror, reflect the determination of the Syrian army, to continue striking terror groups until the liberation of all of Syria.
He said, the recent battles in Idlib exposed the “unlimited support” of Turkey to the terrorist groups.
Earlier in the day, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor said that, the rebels withdrew from the strategic town of Khan Shaykhun, in the southern countryside of Idlib, as well as, key towns in the adjacent northern countryside of Hama province.
Meanwhile, pro-government activists said, Syrian warplanes started sweeping areas where the rebels have withdrawn from, ahead of the entry of the Syrian troops.
The Syrian army has been engaged in battles with the al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front, since last week.
Idlib and the northern countryside of Hama are included in the deescalation zones’ deal that was reached between Russia and Turkey last Sept.
The deal has failed despite several attempts to revive it.
The latest attempt to fix the deal came earlier this month, when Turkey and Russia mediated a fresh cease-fire in Idlib, which failed quickly, with the resumption of the military showdown.– NNN-SANA