TEHRAN, (ST)- Chief of Staff of the Syrian Army and Armed Forces General Ali Abdullah Ayoub and Iran’s Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan held talks on Tuesday in Tehran during which they assessed joint efforts in the fight against takfiri terrorism and stressed the importance of cooperation to confront challenges facing Syria and the entire region.
Gen. Ayoub hailed Iran’s firm support for the Syrian people and army and its key role in fighting terrorism and preventing its expansion in the region and the world.
He reaffirmed the Syrian army’s determination to press ahead with the war on terror until the entire Syrian territory is clean of terrorists, reiterating that the only way to foil the conspiracy on Syria is to enhance alliance between resistance front and Russia.
On his part Dehqan, who reiterated his country’s firm support for the Syrian people and army in confrontation of terrorist organizations, said the Iranian and Syrian peoples are fighting on the same front to defeat terrorism and return calm and security to the region.
“The evil phenomenon of terrorism, which is today active in Iraq and Syria, is an international threat, which will endanger the world if not contained and eliminated,” Dehqan said, hailing the Syria army’s victories in its battle against takfiri terrorists.
He condemned the recent US aggression on a Syrian airbase in April, mstressing that any invasive act against Syria would worsen the current crisis in the country.
“By attempting to weaken the anti-terror resistance front, the hegemonic system is trying to guarantee the safety of the Zionist regime [of Israel] and to rebuild and reinforce the morale of the terrorists and justify its illegitimate presence in the region,” Dehqan said.
The Iranian defense chief also censured Saudi Arabia’s activities in supporting the terrorists and serving the American and Israeli agendas. He said those activities had escalated tensions in the region.
Hamda Mustafa