Hezbollah ‘declares victory in Syrian war’
The Syrian government’s powerful Lebanese ally Hezbollah has declared victory in the Syrian war, dismissing remaining fighting as “scattered battles”, a pro-Hezbollah newspaper reported yesterday.
The comments by Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah mark one of the most confident assessments yet by the government side as it regains swathes of territory in eastern Syria in a rapid advance against Daesh.
Referring to President Bashar Al Assad’s opponents, Nasrallah said “the path of the other project has failed and wants to negotiate for some gains”, the Al Akhbar newspaper cited him saying at a religious gathering.
“We have won in the war (in Syria)...and what remains are scattered battles,” said Nasrallah, whose Iran-backed group has sent thousands of fighters to Syria to support Al Assad.
A source familiar with the contents of Nasrallah’s speech confirmed the report.
Backed by Russia and Iran, Al Assad has crushed numerous pockets of rebelheld territory in the western Syrian cities of Aleppo, Homs and Damascus over the last year, and he appears militarily unassailable in the six-year-long conflict.
Ceasefires brokered by Russia, Turkey, Iran and the United States in remaining rebel-held areas of western Syria have freed up manpower on the government side, helping its advance east into the oil-rich province of Deir Al Zor.
Dilemma
The eastward march to Deir Al Zor, unthinkable two years ago when Al Assad seemed in danger, has underlined his ever more confident position and the dilemma facing Western governments that still want him to leave power in a negotiated transition.
In a televised speech last month, Al Assad said there were signs of victory in the war, but that the battle continued.