Sun Feb 24, 2013 23:12:23
Syrian Information Minister Omran al-Zoabi renounced any involvement of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) or Hezbollah movement in Syria’s conflict, al-Alam reports.
Speaking to al-Alam correspondent in Damascus on Sunday, al-Zoabi described Iran-Syria relations as “strategic” and said the Islamic Republic “stands beside the Syrian people and government”.
As the Syrian government is facing a nearly two-year turmoil fueled by foreign intrusions, some media have baselessly turned the blames toward Syria’s allies, Iran and Hezbollah.
The Syrian minister denied any presence of Hezbollah members in Syria and said stories about involvement of Iran’s revolutionary guard were “lies and baseless accusations”.
“If some countries are concerned about the Syrian people, they should stop sending arms and armed militia to the country,” he added.
“We believe the only solution to solve the conflict is dialog and people are the ones who finally decide about the structure of the government,” al-Zoabi said, explaining “we are ready to even talk to those who carried guns against us, and the only condition is for them to put down their arms and talk”.
Foreign-backed militants in Syria have reportedly been supplied with a large new consignment of weapons, including heavy armaments, over the recent weeks.
Many people, including large numbers of security personnel, have been killed in Syria’s violence since it erupted in March 2011, and several international human rights organizations say the foreign-sponsored militants have committed war crimes.
The Syrian government has repeatedly said that the chaos was being orchestrated from outside the country, and there are reports that a very large number of the militants fighting the Syrian government are foreign nationals.
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