MESOPOTAMIA NEWS TODAYS OP-ED : Trump, U.S. Officials Warn Against Regime Offensive in Syria’s Idlib
Tuesday, September 4, 2018 – THE SOUFAN GROUP – President Donald Trump on Monday warned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his allies Iran and Russia not to “recklessly attack” Syria’s rebel-held Idlib province, warning that hundreds of thousands of people could be killed. “The Russians and Iranians would be making a grave humanitarian mistake to take part in this potential human tragedy,” Trump tweeted on Monday.
Idlib and its surrounding areas are the last major enclave held by rebels fighting Assad. The Assad regime is reportedly preparing a phased offensive to retake the area, which is home to about three million civilians. Earlier Monday, Iran voiced support for a regime offensive on Idlib, saying militants should be “cleaned out” of the region, and the Iranian Foreign Ministry told reporters in Tehran that Syria has the right to reclaim its territory from militants. U.S. officials are worried that an assault on Idlib could involve the use of chemical weapons by the Assad regime.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday said Washington views any government assault on Idlib as an escalation of Syria’s war, and the State Department warned that Washington would respond to any chemical attack by Damascus. U.S. Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley wrote on Twitter late on Monday, “All eyes on the actions of Assad, Russia, and Iran in Idlib.” CNN, Reuters, Voice of America
Related:
Wall Street Journal: Russia Offers a Carrot to Embattled Syrian Rebels
New York Times: In Idlib, Final Offensive in Syrian War May Come at Horrific Cost