Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad said the war on terror in the war-torn country has not been over yet, stressing that the French presence in the country is an occupation.
In an interview with French Paris Match Magazine on Wednesday, Assad said in spite of the significant advance, terrorism still exist in Syria’s northern areas, noting that the support provided to terrorists is still continued by Turkey, the US, Britain and France.
“We have made significant progress in this war… But that doesn’t mean that we have won. We will win when terrorism is eliminated. It is still present in certain areas in the north, and what is more dangerous is that support for this terrorism still continues from Turkey, and from Western countries – whether it’s the United States, Britain, or France. That’s why it is too early to talk about victory,” President Assad was quoted as saying by SANA news agency.
Asked if France continues to support terrorism, the Syrian leader said: “Definitely; in previous periods, they were supplying weapons. This may have changed in the previous months, or last year, but let’s put things into perspective: when French forces come to Syria without an invitation from the legitimate government, this is occupation. There’s no real difference between supporting terrorism and providing military forces to occupy a country. It is the same context, but with different titles.”
“Can we send Syrian forces to fight terrorism in France, without the request of the French government?! Globally, states are governed by international law, not by their intentions. It is not enough to have the desire to fight terrorism; there are international rules for fighting terrorism, and of course, here, I am presuming that there are good intentions. However, we do not believe that there are good intentions. The Syrian government is fighting ISIS, why wasn’t it supported? And why does the French government fight ISIS and yet support al-Nusra, when in fact they are both terrorist organizations?!” President Assad told Paris Match’s Régis Le Sommier.
Meanwhile, President Assad stressed that every terrorist in the areas controlled by the Syrian state will be subject to Syrian law.
“Syrian law is clear concerning terrorism. We have courts specialized in terrorism and they will be prosecuted.”
Asked whether he intends to repatriate terrorists to Europe as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has done for instance, Assad accused Erdogan of trying to ‘blackmail’ Europe.
“A self-respecting man doesn’t talk like this. There are institutions and there are laws. Extraditing terrorists or any convicted person to another state is subject to bilateral agreements between countries; but to release people from prison knowing that they are terrorists and sending them to other countries to kill civilians – this is an immoral act.”
Source: Agencies
