Iran Supports Russia’s Airstrikes in Syria: Spokeswoman
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham on Thursday voiced the country’s support for Russia’s attacks against Takfiri terrorists in Syria.
A real fight against the root causes of the phenomenon of terrorism, which is a common threat against regional and global peace and security, is a necessity, Afkham stressed.
The fight against terrorism requires “serious resolve and joint international action based on cooperation with the Iraqi and Syrian governments that shoulder the main burden of the anti-terror campaign,” she added.
“Given the official request of the Syrian government from the Russian Federation, the Islamic Republic of Iran considers Russia’s military operation against armed terrorist groups in Syria as a step in line with the fight against terrorism and towards the resolution of the ongoing crisis in the region,” Afkham announced.
Russia launched its first air strikes against terrorist targets in Syria hours after Russian parliament gave a formal consent to President Vladimir Putin to use the country’s military in Syria to fight terrorism at a request from the Syrian President Bashar Assad.
"In accordance with the decision by Supreme Commander of Russian Armed Forces Vladimir Putin, aircraft from the Russian Aerospace Force began today (Wednesday) an operation which involves precision airstrikes on ISIL land-based targets in Syria," spokesman for Russian Defense Ministry Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said.
Meanwhile, the office of Assad welcomed Russia's decision to carry out air strikes in Syria, saying the military support came at the request of Damascus.
Syria has been gripped by civil war since March 2011. In the past four years, more than 240,000 people have died in Syria -overwhelmingly civilians– and around 4 million Syrian people are now refugees in other countries. Another 7.6 million are displaced inside Syria.