By Staff, Agencies The commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards [IRG] Major General Hossein Salami criticized the Syrian army for not fighting to preserve their country, adding that the IRG forces were the last people to leave the country. Speaking to a gathering of IRG commander on Thursday, General Salami hailed the former Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad for its foreign policy and siding with the Resistance Front.
"Syria had the brightest and most salient record among Arab countries in confronting Zionism, and it was the only country that did not accept any of the compromise plans and was always in a state of confrontation, offensive, defensive, and resistance towards America and the ‘Israeli’ entity." Salami indicated that the pathways to support the Resistance Front remain open and are not confined to Syria, noting that conditions in the West Asian country could change.
He added that the Takfiri terrorists have been the means of deterrence at the hands of Western countries versus the "soft influence" of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the region, highlighting that Iran's fight against Takfiri terrorists served the entire world.
"After destroying ISIL's control, we had to withdraw our non-necessary forces from Syria," he continued.
He further explained that after the Syrian army could lay its control the situation and could hold the frontlines, Iran's military advisors were reduced.
"Over the past 13-year period, we have tried to make Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Palestinian movement largely independent..." the IRG commander continued.
Salami went to talk about the last days of Assad government, criticizing the Syrian army for not fighting to defend their country.
"We couldn't engage the entire IRG and Basij in a place where its army was just bystander." The IRG commander further said that Iranian intelligence had warned the Syrian government about the increasing activities of the armed terrorist groups.
"Even our brothers [IRG intel forces] were able to find the axes of their attack using intelligence techniques and conveyed the intellects to the political and military level in Syria, but because the will to change, war, and resistance in its true sense did not exist, unfortunately, we say what happened." In a related context, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf said Iran will monitor the new policies of the militant groups regarding ISIS-like behaviors in Syria, as well as “Israeli” assaults, and will act accordingly.
He added that had the al-Assad government heeded Iran's warnings and not disregarded dialogue with its people, the Syrian population would not have experienced these upheavals and Zionist aggressions.
"We are confident that Syria's future will not align with the conspirators' plans," Qalibaf indicated, emphasizing that "the region is rapidly undergoing significant transformations, and we must act wisely to turn current challenges into opportunities." He indicated that "the martyrdom of leaders within Hezbollah had a greater impact than the fall of al-Assad, yet Hezbollah has proven through its performance that it is stronger than before, forcing the Zionist entity to accept a ceasefire." “It is true that the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government would impact the work of the Resistance, but the Resistance forces, particularly Hezbollah, have demonstrated that sooner or later, they will adapt to new circumstances and become even stronger than before."