Military Expert to ST: Securing Damascus and Its Countryside an Important Card at Strategic Level

After securing Damascus and surroundings and Damascus countryside and its villages, Syrian state has gained a strong card at strategic level and its army will move towards the north of the country to recapture terrorist-held areas amid possibility of military aggressions to be carried out by Turkey and the United states in the north, according to the Military and strategic expert, retired Brigadier-General Haitham Hassoun.

The retired officer told the Syriatimes e-newspaper on Monday that the declaration of fully securing Damascus and its countryside is a major victory for Syrian army from a military viewpoint, while it means a strong card for the Syrian state in forthcoming talks from a political viewpoint.

 “Today’s victory has foiled the plots of terrorists and their operators in the surrounding of the capital [Damascus], which is the symbol of the Syrian state’s sovereignty. It also represents the beginning of rebuilding process in the southern area,” the retired Brig-Gen said, adding that the return of displaced persons to their homes in the liberated areas will reduce the pressure put on the Syrian government because of the establishment of temporary shelters.

He expects that the Syrian army’s forthcoming military operations will be carried out in the north of the country, precisely in the northern countryside of Hama and the western countryside of Aleppo and Idleb and Afrin, as the southern region in Syria witnesses stability at military level in favour of the Syrian state that have the power of deterrence in this front.

“The forthcoming operations will be in the north of the country because the Turkish occupation troops do exist there and terrorist groups are being rehabilitated there,” the military expert clarified, asserting that the operations will stop the demographic change being made by Turkey and the US in Afrin and other areas.

Today, General Command of the Army and Armed Forces announced that Damascus and surroundings and Damascus countryside and its villages are fully secure after defeating foreign-backed terrorist organizations in al-Hajar al-Aswad, Yarmouk Camp, Babila, Yalada , Beit Sahim areas in the western Ghouta of Damascus.

Interviewed by: Basma Qaddour