General Sergey Shoigu, the veteran Russian Minister of Defense, statements in Israel yesterday that "the counter-terrorism operation in Syria is nearing completion" and that "some issues should be tackled immediately," are indeed vital, and strategic , particularly to Israel!

Unfortunately, Israel is still not only on the wrong side of the war against terrorism in Syria, but still one of the main supporters and backers to Al-Qaeda affiliates, especially in the 1974 UNDOF zones!

General Shoigu's visit and statements can be taken as a piece of advice to Israel, whose ''security'' is indeed, given its occupation of the Syrian Golan and its unwavering reckless support to the cancerous cells of terrorists, a matter of collective peace, understandings and agreements!

In the global village of today, geography does not bring  security as a barrier! A rocket travels even faster than the sound! The war mongering and sword rattling of Mr. Netanyahu and the reckless hawks of his supporters, including some powerless and toothless ewes,  bring but more disillusionment, isolation and destruction.

Mr. Shoigu's calls as to immediately tackle some issues are but to direct attention for a U-turn as to relaunch a Marshal-like plan for the region! Syria's, along with its friends and brothers from Russia, Iran, Hezbollah and all world freedom fighters' counter-terrorism operation is nearing completion.

Accordingly, the Syrians and their allies fought on behalf of the entire world as to rid not only Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Russia, Iran from terrorism but even the states and governments which have been standing with terrorism. Terrorism cannot and should not be used as a tool for political purposes; setting your neighbors' house on fire includes too the high risks of not only burning your hands, but the strong possibility of one's total burning!

Hopefully, the supporters of terrorism were to wake up! The Syrians, under the leadership of President Bashar Hafez Al-Assad, and hand in hand with their Army, brothers and allies, are indeed unbreakable and indivisible.   The Syrians are peace advocates NOT war mongers! Others' wars were imposed upon us! On the entire globe behalf, we have been repelling and fighting terrorists!

Dr. Mohamad Abdo Al-Ibrahim

Editor-in-Chief

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

https://www.facebook.com/Mohamad.Abdo.AlIbrahim

http://www.presidentassad.net/

DAMASCUS, (ST)_ On the 44^th  Anniversary of October Liberation War, the Syria Times is honored to publish the historic speech of the late President Hafez Al-Assad on this occasion:

Brotherly citizens,

Our brave soldiers and army officers,

Our great people,

I salute each and every one of you. I address in you, today, the true Arabian spirit, the spirit of courage and heroism, the spirit of sacrifice and giving.

I address in you, your love to the homeland, and your faith in the cause you have decided to defend. For more than a week, the enemy has been mobilizing  and premeditating its forces, thinking it will deal a treacherous blow to us. But we were vigilant enough to monitor its movements and cantonments, and to repel its new potential aggression.  We did not allow the enemy to take us by surprise. So, our armed forces respond appropriately  to it  . Our brothers in Egypt did  not allow  the aggression  to take them by surprise. The great army of Egypt rushed to defend the dignity of Egypt and the dignity of the Arab Nation. Greetings to our army and  to our people, and a tribute to the army of Egypt and the great Arab people of Egypt.

I must at these  crucial moments pay  another tribute  from the heart to the  brave military forces ,  who came to our  country from our  Arab brotherly country of Morocco to take part in the  battle of pride and dignity and to sacrifice their blood generously ,  shoulder to shoulder with their brothers in Syria and Egypt . Thereby, they embody the unity of the nation, the common destiny and the  sanctity of the goal.

Today , we are fighting the battle of honor and pride, in defense of our precious land, for our glorious history , and of the heritage of our forefathers. We fight  the  battle, equipped  with faith in God and in ourselves; and with the solid  and compelling determination  that victory will be on our side.

A brief review of the Syria Times Online: www.syriatimes.sy , relaunched On October 6, 2012, and of President Bashar Al-Assad unofficial Website: www.presidentassad.net, launched in 2007- as a personal dedication by Dr. Mohamad Abdo Al-Ibrahim- necessitates indeed at least, given the millions of clicks and visits from around the globe, a one-year thorough reading for what has been stated by H.E. President Bashar Al-Assad, considered by many as, not only the defender, protector and most popular humanitarian world leader, but too as the second to none observer, analyst and strategist president journalist, especially when it comes to foreign mainstream media language, discourse and dubious goals!

"Pictures cannot tell you the story, even videos, everything could be manipulated these days. I wouldn’t say that there are no such attacks on any building, but as a government, we don’t have a policy to destroy hospitals or schools or any such facility for a simple reason: first of all, morally, the second reason is that if we do so, we are offering the militants the incubator, the social incubator that they’ve been looking for, it’s going to be a gift, something we wouldn’t do because it’s against our interests. It’s like shooting ourselves in the foot," stated President Assad in his Danish TV2 Interview, October 6, 2016.

 Lifting the ISIS siege of Deir Ezzor city is a great victory as it puts an end to dark days imposed by ISIS terrorists on the city for three years. This achievement is a turning point in eliminating terrorism as it brings us closer to the moment of the final victory. Breaking the siege on Deir Ezzor city is a strategic shift in the war on terrorism and it confirms the ability of the Syrian Arab Army and its allies and their determination to defeat the terrorist project completely in Syria.

After a series of successful operations, units of our armed forces, in cooperation with the supporting and allied forces and backed by the Syrian and Russian air forces, have completed the second phase of their operations deep in the Syrian Badia (desert) and they managed through qualitative operations and heroic actions to break the siege on our people who were besieged for more than three years in Deir Ezzor.

The siege-breaking operation came after the forces advancing from the direction of Raqqa/Deir Ezzor met with the forces that have stood firmly in Deir Ezzor, protected the residents there, achieved heroics and set a model to be followed in sacrifice and steadfastness that led to this great victory. Hundreds of ISIS terrorists were killed or injured during the operation, in addition to the destruction of many of their sites, fortifications and hundreds of vehicles. The victory constitutes a turning point in the war on terrorism and affirms the ability of the Syrian Arab Army and its allies to defeat the terrorist project in Syria and foil the fragmentation plans of its sponsors and supporters.

This achievement is also an important point for the expansion of military operations in the region and its surroundings to eliminate the remaining hotbeds of ISIS terrorist organization, whose military structure has been destroyed and which has collapsed rapidly under the strikes of the Syrian Army. This achievement is also a vital artery for delivering supplies to the city and the forces defending it.

The victory highlights the resilience of the people and steadfastness of the valiant armed forces in Deir Ezzor. The Syrian Arab Army will remain the shield of the homeland and its invulnerable fortress. Deir Ezzor victory reflects determination of Syrian Arab army to continue the war on terrorism until eliminating it and the restoration of security and stability to the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic. The lifting of this siege provides helpful conditions to the achievement of another necessary goal, which is the total liberation of the Deir Ezzor city from the terrorists.

The great victory will increase determination to defeat the terrorists until security and stability are restored to the entirety of Syria. The situation in Syria is developing with the Syrian Army’s achieving victories in its war against terrorism. Terrorism is a complicated global matter and the main problem is that some sides continue to provide aid to the extremist terrorist organizations.

The situation in Syria has been radically changing in favor of the Syrian Army with more areas being liberated from terrorism. Current talks in Geneva and Astana will lead to a political solution to crisis in Syria after victories being realized by the Syrian Arab army with the support of Russia, Iran and resistance forces in the region. The end of crisis in Syria is near after lifting the siege of Der Ezzor.

The victory in Der Ezzor is a slap to the international and regional forces, mainly the US, Zionist Entity, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and their tools in the region that bet on the project of fragmenting Syria. The lifting of siege of Deir Ezzor city is an overwhelming defeat for the Zionist terrorist plot in the region. The victory affirms that Syria will remain the land of dignity and Arabism.

The lifting of the ISIS siege of Deir Ezzor is a historic victory over the forces of evil and Zionist and Wahhabi terrorism. The achievement comes with the series of victories being realized by the Syrian Arab army against terrorism.

The reopening of the Deir Ezzor road is a strategic disaster for ISIS, which is now at its weakest since 2014 and seems unable to break out of an accelerating spiral of defeats.

Syria will ever remain united as all the schemes against it began to be exposed. The huge achievements realized by the Syrian army earlier in Aleppo and  in Deir Ezzor are turning points on the long way for defeating terrorism and fulfilling the aspirations of the Syrian people and Syria’s friends in the region and the world.

K.Q.

Had it not been for President Bashar Hafez Al-Assad, not only Syria, but the major part of the region would have been turned by now into a Moslem Brotherhood ISIS satellite region in the US-Israeli orbit of exploitation, subjugation and hegemony.

The reality of the ongoing terrorist war against Syria, people, Army and President, and for years, does assert the heroic, brave and strategic role of President Assad in standing tall, firm and steadfast in defending his country, friends, allies and citizens against terrorism.

It has been a fierce war by the greedy powers of the new colonial and expansionist powers, using every possible means of distortion, lies, fabrications and slaughter! Syria's geography, history, civilization and roles was the target as to create new realities and facts on the ground in the interest of sinister greedy objectives of the new colonials!