Above photo: AFP via Getty Images.
Baghdad said it is working to convene an international conference on the situation in Syria.
While Tehran vowed to support the fight against extremist groups.
Tehran and Baghdad expressed support for Syria on 6 December during a press conference to discuss the recent expansion of extremist groups across the country, following meetings between the foreign ministers of the three states in the Iraqi capital.
“There is an international duty to fight terrorism in Syria,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said during the press conference. The foreign minister thanked Baghdad for hosting the tripartite meeting in the Iraqi capital, where he “held important meetings with the presidencies in Iraq in which he talked about relations between the two countries and the situation in Syria.”
“The message of today’s tripartite meeting has three messages, the first of which is to support Syria – government and people – against the armed terrorist groups. Whoever wishes to avoid the interference of the Zionist entity in this situation in Syria is mistaken,” Araghchi added.
“We announced our support for Syria. We will continue this support with all our weight. The terrorist threats in Syria will not be limited to it only, but will extend to neighboring countries if they are not fought,” he warned. “Terrorism knows no borders and terrorists must be fought in their cradle. There is no distinguishing when fighting terrorism.”
Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said during the conference that his country will send humanitarian aid to Syria, while affirming Baghdad’s efforts to convene an international conference on the situation.
“We will take all diplomatic steps with Arab countries and have already contacted the foreign ministers of Turkiye, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, and several European nations. These discussions are ongoing,” Hussein said.
Syrian Foreign Minister Bassam Sabbagh said, “terrorists are violating the resolutions of the UN and the Security Council. Interventions in Syria are now exposed,” adding that there has been wide support for Syria in “the fight against terrorism, and the rejection of double standards,” while thanking Baghdad for hosting the meetings.
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), formerly known as the Nusra Front, and Turkiye’s Syrian National Army (SNA) proxy are the two main forces leading the attack on Syria.
Since the assault began on 27 November, extremist factions have captured several areas in the countryside of Idlib and Aleppo, Aleppo city itself, and several areas in the countryside and city of Hama, with thousands now beginning to flee the central governorate of Homs as extremist groups started to advance on its main city on Friday.
The HTS-led extremists announced that they have taken two towns, Rastan and Talbisseh, along the strategic M5 highway and are now within five kilometers of Homs.