The seize of Damascus by militants was a “elementary act of justice,” the outgoing US president claims
Outgoing US President Joe Biden has claimed credit score for the autumn of Damascus to a coalition of armed teams, together with jihadists from Hayat Tahrir-al-Sham (HTS). Washington had weakened the supporters of former Syrian President Bashar Assad, the American chief has stated.
The results of the lightning offensive of anti-government militants up to now two weeks was a “elementary act of justice” and a “second of historic alternative for the long-suffering residents of Syria,” Biden stated in a video tackle from the White Home on Sunday.
“For years, the principle backers of Assad have been Iran, [the Lebanese-based militant movement] Hezbollah, and Russia. However over the past week, their assist collapsed, all three of them. As a result of all three of them are far weaker right now than they have been once I took workplace,” Biden stated.
Washington has been pushing for the ouster of Assad since 2011, when mass protests spiraled right into a devastating civil conflict, by which foreign-armed Islamists emerged as dominant gamers amongst anti-government forces. HTS, one of many teams that took over Damascus on Sunday, was previously generally known as Jabhat al-Nusra, a Syrian Al-Qaeda affiliate. The conflict was exacerbated additional in 2014 when the terrorist group Islamic State (IS, previously ISIS) rose as a regional risk amid the collapse of safety in Syria.
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In his speech, Biden highlighted the sanctions on Syria, in addition to the US navy presence within the nation and its assist for Kurdish militias within the northeast, which denied Damascus entry to fertile lands and oil fields below their management. The US has additionally supported Israel in its navy campaigns in Gaza and Lebanon and its direct confrontation with Iran, Biden added.
“Our strategy has shifted the steadiness of energy within the Center East,” Biden stated, mirroring related remarks by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
By means of this mix of assist of our companions, sanctions, diplomacy, and focused navy pressure the place vital, we now see new alternatives opening up for the individuals of Syria and for the complete area.
The US president claimed that Washington was clear-eyed about HTS and its “grim report of terrorism and human proper abuses.” Washington will “assess not simply their phrases, however their actions,” he acknowledged. Biden’s nationwide safety adviser, Jake Sullivan, stated on Sunday that HTS’ historical past of terrorism and atrocities is a priority for the US.
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Abu Mohammed al-Julani, the present chief of HTS, has had a $10 million bounty posted on his head by the US since 2013. In response to the US authorities, the fighters he led have been answerable for kidnappings and massacres of civilians.
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