Hezbollah Will Not Leave Syria Until Assad Has Complete Victory, Nasrallah Says

Hezbollah will not leave Syria until it has achieved victory and ensured the Syrian government’s survival, the group’s leader announced on Sunday, the Daily Star reported.

“The only condition in which we will return to Lebanon is our victory in Syria, meaning when our project is triumphant over the designs of others,” said Hezbollah secretary-general Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah.

Hezbollah’s forces have been fighting alongside the Syrian government since 2013. Syria’s war is a geopolitical plot to break the “Axis of Resistance,” Nasrallah said.

“Every day the truth is becoming more apparent – it is a battle to effect demographic changes in the political map, and in the formation of borders and nations,” Nasrallah said. “There were plans to relocate people who have been living on these lands for thousands of years and desecrate their shrines and civilizations.”

He also said the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) is a danger for everyone that must be defeated, and accused Turkey of attempting to take control of Syrian and Iraqi cities under the guise of fighting ISIS. Turkey supports rebel factions fighting against the government of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad and his allies.

“After all the Iraqis fighting for Mosul, in comes Turkey and says … ‘Mosul is Turkish and must go back to Turkey. Same thing in Aleppo. They say, ‘It’s ours, not Syria’s,’” he said.

Russia Says It Is Not Considering a New Truce for Aleppo

The three-day truce in Aleppo will not be renewed, Russia said on Monday, according to Agence France-Presse.

“The question of renewing the humanitarian pause is not relevant now,” said deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov.

Intense fighting resumed in Aleppo on Saturday following a brief cease-fire announced by Russia and the Syrian government last week.

“Our opponents must ensure appropriate behaviour by the anti-government groups that in particular sabotaged the medical evacuation that was intended during the humanitarian pause,” Ryabkov said, criticizing the U.S.-led coalition for not using its influence on the armed opposition in Aleppo.

The conditions needed for ministerial-level negotiations on Syria will not likely be met before the November 8 U.S. presidential elections, Ryabkov added.

The three-day pause reportedly allowed civilians and fighters to leave the besieged rebel-held parts of Aleppo through humanitarian corridors. However, only a small number of people evacuated the opposition districts where nearly 275,000 people are trapped.

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov accused fighters from the former al-Qaida-affiliate Jabhat Fatah al-Sham and the Islamist Ahrar al-Sham group of not allowing civilians or fighters to leave.

Turkey Will Not Work With the Kurds to Liberate Raqqa, Erdogan Says

The Turkish military targeted dozens of ISIS and Kurdish YPG positions in Syria over the weekend, Reuters reported.

A Turkish military statement on Monday said “Operation Euphrates Shield” had left both groups without “maneuvering capacity.” Turkey launched “Euphrates Shield” in August, sending tanks, troops and warplanes over the border, and supporting Syrian rebels, to target both jihadist and Kurdish forces near its shared border with Syria.

Turkish-backed forces will continue south toward the ISIS-held city of Al-Bab, said Turkish president Erdogan on Saturday, adding that Turkey will not work with the Kurds to liberate Raqqa. The YPG is a key U.S. ally in the fight against the ISIS.

The Syrian government has accused Turkey of breaching its sovereignty, saying the presence of Turkish troops in Syria is unacceptable.

Recommended Reads:

• The Associated Press: Kremlin: Demands for Assad’s Departure ‘Thoughtless’
• The Washington Post: Plans to Send Heavier Weapons to CIA-Backed Rebels in Syria Stall Amid White House Skepticism
• The Intercept: Fighting for Aleppo: How Syria’s Forgotten Revolutionaries Rose Up ‘To Kill This Fear’
• Agence France-Presse: Syria’s Kurds Restore Ancient Names to Arabised Towns
• The Washington Institute: The Druze and Assad: Strategic Bedfellows